i£x  IGtbrtB 


SEYMOUR  DURST 


It'ben  you  lecwe,  please  leave  this  hook 

Because  it  has  been  said 
"Ever'thing  comes  t'  him  who  wails 

Except  a  loaned  hook." 


Avery  Architectural  and  Fine  Arts  Library 
Gi[  T  OF  Seymour  B.  Durst  Old  York  Library 

1 

Digitized  by 

the  Internet  Archive 

in  2013 

http://archive.org/details/societyasihavefoOOmcal_0 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


I 

I 


Society 

As  J  Have  Found  It 


BY 

WARD  McAllister 


NEW  YORK 

CASSELL  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 

104  &  106  FouRiii  AvKNUK,  Nkw  York 


EDITION  DE  LUXE 

Limiti'd  to  four  Iiundred  (400)  copies,  of  ^vJiicJi  t/iis  is 

No. 

Copyright,  1890, 

Bv  WARD  McAllister. 


An  rights  reserved. 


THE  MERSHON  COMPANY  PRE'^S, 
KAIIWAV,  N.  J. 


DECEMDEIV  9,  19  33 


VAKD  McALLIiTEK 

Sherry  with  the  terrapin  and  claret  with  the  rf)ast; 
When  the  ladies  leave  the  table,  oh,  it's  then  we  love  'em  most; 
Madeira  for  the  gentlemen  to  sit  and  drink  their  fill, 
And  Mr.  \V:xvd  McAllister  to  lead  in  the  tpiadrille! 

Brownstone  into  m.arble  is  the  way  a  city  grows; 
Marble  into  chrome  and  steel,  and  after,  no  one  knows; 
But  brownstone  into  marble,  as  a  thoughtful  man  will  note, 
Strolling  to  the  Union  Club  with  a  flower  in  his  coat. 

The  cotillion  sets  are  forming  to  the  airs  from  "Pinafore," 
And  five-and-twenty  Patriarchs  will  do  to  guard  a  door, 
Before  the  brownstone  crumbles  and  before  the  cries  begin: 
"Oh,  Mr.  Ward  McAllister,  it's  time  to  let  us  in." 

"Oh,  wait  a  little  longer,  we'll  be  finished  in  a  trice; 
The  figure's  very  pleasant  and  the  dancing's  very  nice. 
There's  just  enough  of  favors  for  the  dancers  on  the  floor," 
Quoth  Mr.  Ward  McAllister,  "and  more  is  always  more." 

And  what  would  be  the  favors  for  a  leader  in  the  dance? 
A  coat  that's  cut  in  Savile  Row,  a  beard  that's  cut  in  France, 
A  corner  at  Delmonico's  with  the  cover  freshly  laid, 
And  the  choicest  seat  beside  the  whip  in  the  Coaching  Club  Parade. 

A  pretty  taste  in  canvasbacks,  a  taking  way  with  whist, 
A  proper  word  on  New  Year's  Day  for  every  hand  that's  kissed ; 
A  house  in  Twenty-first  Street  for  a  gentleman's  abode. 
And  bayberry  and  goldenrod  to  line  a  Newjiort  road. 

Oh,  Newport  is  a  summer  town  with  garlands  on  her  brow, 
But  who  drives  a  basket  phaeton  at  noon  in  Newport  now? 
In  Narragansett  Avenue,  what  lady  stops  to  call : 
"Oh,  Mr.  Ward  McAllister,  pray  get  us  up  a  hall"? 

And  who  in  Twenty-first  Street  now  comes  rolling  up  to  dine 
With  "Mr.  Ward  McAllister,  pray  let  us  taste  your  wine"? 
Not  even  Mrs.  Astor  sends  to  set  her  royal  task: 
"Oh,  Mr.  Ward  McAllister,  please  tell  us  whom  to  ask." 

Brownstone  into  marble  and  cotillion  into  dust. 
And  dancer  into  Icss-than-dream  and  brightest  blade  to  rust; 
The  doors  are  all  unguarded;  they  are  trampling  on  the  stairs, 
But  Mr.  Ward  IVIcAllister  he  neither  heeds  nor  cares. 

Sherry  witli  the  terrapin  and  claret  with  the  roast; 
When  the  ladies  leave  the  table,  oh,  it's  then  we  love  'em  most; 
Madeira  for  the  gentlemen  to  sit  and  drink  their  fill, 
And  Mr.  Ward  McAllister  to  lead  in  the  ipiadrille! 

— KF.NNK  rii  Al  l  AN  Robinson 


AUTHOR'S  NOTE. 


One  -who  reads  this  book  throuoh  will 
have  as  rough  a  mental  journey  as  his 
physical  nature  would  undergo  in  riding 
over  a  corduroy  road  in  an  old  stage-coach. 
It  makes  no  pretension  to  either  scholar- 
ship or  elegant  diction. 

W.  McA. 


vii 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

My  Family — My  Mother  an  Angel  of  Beauty  and  Charity 
— My  Father's  Nobleness  of  Character — Building  Bonfires 
on  Paradise  Rocks  and  flying  Kites  from  Purgatory  with 
Uncle  Sam  Ward — My  Brother  the  Lawyer,         .       .  . 

CHAPTER  n. 

My  New  York  Life — A  Penurious  Aunt  who  fed  me  on 
Turkey — My  First  Fancy  Bail — Spending  One  Thousand 
Dollars  for  a  Costume — The  Schermerhorns  give  a  ball  in 
Great  Jones  Street — Sticking  a  Man's  Calf  and  Drawing  Blood 
— A  Craze  for  Dancing — I  Study  Law — Blackstone  has  a  Rival 
in  lovely  Southern  Maidens — I  go  to  San  Francisco  in  '50 — 
Fees  Paid  in  Gold  Dust — Eggs  at  $2 — My  First  Housekeep- 
ing— A  faux  pas  at  a  Reception,  .       .       .       .  . 

CHAPTER  III. 

Introduction  to  London  Sports — A  Dog  Fight  in  the  Sub- 
urbs— Sporting  Ladies — The  Drawing  of  the  Badger — My 
Host  gets  Gloriously  Drunk — Visit  to  Her  Majesty's  Kitchen 
—  Dinner  with  the  Chef  of  Windsor  Castle — I  taste  Montilla 
Sherr)-  for  the  First  Time — "A  Shilling  to  pay  for  the 
Times,"      -  -  - 

CHAPTER  IV. 

A  Winter  in  Florence  and  Rome — Cheap  Living  and  Good 
Cooking — Walnut-fed  Turkeys — The  Grand  Duke  of  Tus- 
cany "s  Ball — An  American  Girl  who  Elbowed  the  King — What 
a  Ball  Supper  should  be — Ball  to  the  Archduke  of  Tuscany — 


X 


CO. V  TENTS. 


PAGE 

"  The  Duke  of  Pennsylvania  " — Following  the  Hounds  on 
the  Campagna — The  American  Minister  Snubs  American 
Gentlemen,    ---------  41 

CHAPTER  V. 

Summer  in  Baden-Baden — The  Late  Emperor  William  no 
Judge  of  Wine — My  Irish  Doctor — His  Horror  of  Water — 
How  an  American  Girl  tried  to  Captivate  Him — The  Lou- 
isiana Judge — I  win  the  Toss  and  get  the  Mule — The  Judge 
"fixes"  his  Pony — The  "  Pike  Ballet,"       -       -       -       -  55 

CHAPTER  VL 

Winter  in  Pau — I  hire  a  perfect  Villa  for  $800  a  year — 
Luxury  at  Small  Cost — I  Learn  how  to  give  Dinners — 
Fraternizing  with  the  Bordeaux  Wine  Merchants — The 
Judge's  Wild  Scheme — I  get  him  up  a  Dinner — General 
Bosquet — The  Pau  Hunt — The  Frenchmen  wear  beautiful 
Pink  Coats,  but  their  Horses  wont  Jump — Only  the  General 
took  the  Ditch,    ---------  65 

CHAPTER  Vn. 

My  Return  to  New  York — Dinner  to  a  well-known  Mil- 
lionaire— Visit  of  Lord  Frederick  Cavendish,  Hon.  E.  Ash- 
ley, and  G.  W.  des  Voeux  to  the  United  States — I  Entertain 
them  at  my  Southern  Home— My  Father's  Old  Friends 
resent  my  Manner  of  Enterta'ning — Her  Majesty's  Consul 
disgrimtled — Cedar  Wash-tubs  and  Hot  Sheets  for  my  Eng- 
lish Guests — Shooting  Snipe  over  the  Rice  Lands — Scouring 
the  Country  for  Pretty  Girls,        ------  77 

CHAPTER  VHL 

A  Southern  Deer  Park— -A  Don  Quixote  Steed — We  Hunt 
for  Deer  and  Bag  a  Turkey — Getting  a  Dinner  by  Force — 
The  French  Chef  and  the  Colored  Cook  Contrasted — One  is 
Inspired,  the  Other  follows  Tradition — Making  a  Sauce  of 
Herbs  and  Cream — Shooting  Ducks  across  the  Moon — A 
Dawfuskie  Pic-nic,  .-------89 


CONTENTS.  XI 


CHAPTER  IX. 

PAGE 

I  Leave  the  South — A  Typical  British  Naval  Officer — An 
Officer  of  the  Household  Troops — Early  Newport  Life — A 
Country  Dinner — The  Way  1  got  up  Pic  nics — Farmers 
throw  their  Houses  Open  to  Us — A  Bride  receives  us  in  her 
Bridal  Array — My  Newport  Farm — My  Southdowns  and  my 
Turkeys — What  an  English  Lady  said  of  our  Little  Island — 
Newport  a  place  to  take  Social  Root  in,        ....  107 

CHAPTER  X. 

Society's  Leaders — A  Lady  whose  Dinners  were  Exquisite 
and  whose  Wines  were  Perfect — Her  "  Blue  Room  Parties" — 
Two  Colonial  Beauties — The  Introduction  of  the  Chef — The 
Prince  of  Wales  in  New  York — The  Ball  in  his  Honor  at  the 
Academy  of  Music — The  Fall  of  the  Dancing  Platform — Gro- 
tesque Figures  cut  by  the  Dancers — The  Prince  dances  Well 
— Admirable  Supper  Arrangements — -A.  Light  Tea  and  a  Big 
Appetite — The  Prince  at  West  Point — I  get  a  Snub  from 
General  Scott,       -       -       -       -       -       -       -       -       -  123 

CHAPTER  XL 

A  Handsome,  Courtly  Man — A  Turkey  Chase — A  Visit 
to  Livingston  Manor — An  Ideal  Life — On  Horseback  from 
Staatsburg  to  New  York — Village  Inn  Dinners — I  entertain 
a  Fashionable  Party  at  the  Gibbons  Mansion — An  Old  House 
Rejuvenated — The  Success  of  the  Party — Country  Life  may 
be  enjoyed  here  as  well  as  in  England  if  one  has  the  Money 
and  the  Inclination  for  it — It  means  Hard  Work  for  the 
Host,  though,  -       -  139 

CHAPTER  XII. 

John  Van  Buren's  Dinner — I  spend  the  Entire  Day  in 
getting  my  Dress-coat — Lord  Ilartington  criticises  American 
Expressions — Contrast  in  our  way  of  Living  in  1862  and 
i8go — In  Social  Union  is  Social  Strength — We  band  to- 
gether for  our  Common  Good — The  organization  of  the 
"Cotillion  Dinners" — the  "Smart"  Set,  and  the  "Solid" 
Set — A  Defense  of  Fashion,       -  155 


Xll 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

PAGE 

Cost  of  Cotillion  Dinners — My  delicate  Position — The 
Debut  of  a  Beautiful  Blonde — Lord  Roseberry's  mot — We 
have  better  Madeira  than  England — I  am  dubbed  "  The  Auto- 
crat of  Drawing-rooms" — A  Grand  Domino  Ball — Cruel 
Tricks  of  a  fair  Mask — An  English  Lady's  Maid  takes  a 
Bath — The  first  Cotillion  Dinners  given  at  Newport — Out-of- 
Door  Feasting — Dancing  in  the  Barn,       .        .       .       .  165 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  first  private  Balls  at  Delmonico"s — A  Nightingale  who 
drove  Four-in-hand — Private  Theatricals  in  a  Stable— A 
Yachting  Excursion  without  wind  and  a  Clam-bake  under 
difficulties — A  Poet  describes  the  Fiasco — Plates  for  foot- 
stools and  parboiled  Champagne  for  the  thirsty — The  Silver, 
Gold,  and  Diamond  Dinners — Giving  Presents  to  guests,      -  181 


CHAPTER  XV. 

The  Four-in-hand  Craze — Postilions  and  Outriders  fol- 
low— A  Trotting-horse  Courtship — Cost  of  Newport  Picnics 
Then  and  Now — Driving  off  a  Bridge — An  Accident  that 
might  have  been  Serious — A  Dance  at  a  Tea-house — The 
Coachmen  make  a  Raid  on  the  Champagne — They  are  all 
Intoxicated  and  Confusion  reigns — A  Dangerous  Drive 
Home,  ...       -  igi 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

Grand  Banquet  to  a  Bride  elect — She  sat  in  a  bank  of 
Roses  with  Fountains  playing  around  her — An  Anecdote  of 
Almack's — The  way  the  Duke  of  Wellington  introduced  my 
Father  and  Dominick  Lynch  to  the  Swells — I  determine  to 
have  an  American  Almack's — The  way  the  "  Patriarchs' " 
was  founded — 'I'he  One-man  Power  Abolished — Success  of 
the  Organization,  207 


CONTENTS. 


Xlll 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

PACE 

A  Lady  who  has  led  Society  for  many  years — A  Grand 
Dame  indeed — -The  Patriarchs  a  great  social  Feature — Organ- 
izing the  F.  C.  1).  C. — Their  Rise  and  Fall — The  Mother 
Goose  Ball — My  Encounters  with  socially  ambitious  Work- 
ers— I  try  to  Please  all — The  Famous  "  Swan  Dinner" — It 
cost  $10,000 — A  Lake  on  the  Dinner-table — The  Swans  have 
a  mortal  Combat,        -       -       -       -       -       -       -  -221 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

How  to  introduce  a  young  Girl  into  Society — I  make  the 
Daughter  of  a  Relative  a  reigning  Belle — First  Offers  of 
Marriage  generally  the  Best — Wives  should  flirt  with  their 
Husbands — How  to  be  fashionable — "  Nobs  "  and  "  Swells" 
— The  Prince  of  Wales's  Aphorism — The  value  of  a  pleasant 
Manner — How  a  Gentleman  should  dress — I  might  have 
made  a  Fortune — Commodore  Vanderbilt  gives  me  a  straight 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Success  in  Entertaining — The  Art  of  Dinner-giving — 
Selection  of  Guests — A  happy  Mixture  of  Young  Women 
and  Dowagers — The  latter  more  appreciative  of  the  Good 
Things  —  Interviewing  the  Chef — "Uncle  Sam"  Ward's 
Plan — Mock  Turtle  Soup  a  Delusion  and  a  Snare — The  Two 
Styles  of  cooking  Terrapin — Grasshopper-fed  Turkeys — 
Sourbet  should  not  be  flavored  with  Rum — Nesselrode  the 
best  of  all  the  Ices,  -       -       -  255 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Madeira  the  King  of  Wines — It  took  its  Name  from  the 
Ship  it  came  in — Daniel  Webster  and  "Butler  16" — How 
Philadelphians  "fine"  their  Wines — A  Southern  Wine 
Party — An  Expert's  shrewd  Guess — The  Newton  Gordons — 
Prejudice  against  Malmsey — Madeira  should  be  kept  in  the 
Garret — Some  famous  Brands,  267 


XIV  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

PAGE 

Brut  Champagne — Another  Revolution  in  treatment  of 
this  Wine — It  must  be  Old  to  be  Good — '74  Champagne  worth 
$8  a  bottle  in  Paris — How  to  frappe  Chamaagne — The  best 
Clarets — Even  your  Vin  Ordinaire  should  be  Decanted — 
Sherries — Spaniards  drink  them  from  the  Wood — I  prefer  this 
way — The  "  famous  Forsyth  Sherry  " — A  Wine-cellar  not  a 
Necessity,      -       .  279 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

Assigning  Guests  at  Dinner — The  Boston  fashion  dying 
out — The  approved  Manner — Going  in  to  Dinner — Time  to 
be  spent  at  table — Table  Decoration — Too  many  Flowers  in 
bad  taste — Simplicity  the  best  style — Queen  Victoria's  table 
— Her  Dinner  served  at  8.15,  but  she  eats  her  best  meal  at 
2  P.M. — Being  late  at  Dinner  a  breach  of  good  Manners — 
A  Dinner  acceptance  a  sacred  Obligation — A  Visite  de  diges- 
tion, 2gi 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

-Some  practical  Questions  answered — Difference  between 
Men  and  Women  Cooks — Swedish  Women  the  cleanest  and 
most  economical — My  Bills  with  a  Chef — My  Bills  with  a 
Woman  Cook — Hints  on  Marketing — I  have  done  my  own 
Buying  for  forty  years — Mme.  Rothschild  personally  super- 
vises her  famous  Dinners — Menu  of  an  old-fashioned  South- 
ern Dinner — Success  of  an  Impromptu  Banquet,   -       -       -  305 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

The  "  Banner  Ball  " — How  to  prepare  a  Ball-room  Floor 
— A  curious  Costume  and  a  sharp  Answer — The  Turkish 
Ball — Indisposition  of  ladies  to  dance  at  a  Public  Ball — The 
Yorktown  Centennial  Ball — Committees  are  Ungrateful — My 
E.xperience  in  this  Matter— I  discover  Mr.  Blaine  and  intro- 
duce Mvself,  323 


COJVT£.VTS.  XV 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

PACE 

A  Famous  Newport  Ball — Exquisite  effect  produced  by 
blocks  of  Ice  and  Electric  Lights — The  Japanese  room — 
Corners  for  "  Flirtation  couples  " — A  superb  Supper — Secre- 
tary Frelinghuysen  in  the  Barber  shop — I  meet  Attorney- 
General  Brewster — A  Remarkable  Man — I  entertain  him  at 
Newport — A  youug  Admirer  gives  him  a  Banquet  in  New 
York — Transformation  of  the  Banquet-hall  into  a  Ball- 
room,  -  335 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

New  Era  in  New  York  Society — Extravagance  of  Living 
— Grand  Fancy  Dress  Ball  in  Fifth  Avenue — I  go  as'  the 
Lover  of  Margaret  de  Valois — A  great  Journalist  at  New- 
port— A  British  Officer  rides  into  a  Club  House — The  great 
Journalist's  masked  Ball — A  mysterious  Blue  Domino — 
Breakfast  at  Southwick's  Grove  to  the  Duke  of  Beaufort — 
Picnic  given  President  Arthur — His  hearty  Enjoyment  of  it — 
Governor  Morgan  misjudges  my  "  Open  Air  Lunches  " — The 
Pleasure  of  Country  Frolics,  349 

CHAPTER  XXVn. 

I  visit  Washington  as  the  guest  of  Attorney-General 
Brewster — A  Dinner  at  the  White  House — Amusing  arrange- 
ment of  Guests — The  Winthrop  Statue — The  memorable 
Winters  of  1S84-S5 — A  Millionaire's  House-warming — A 
London  Ball  in  New  York — A  Modern  Amy  Robsart — 
Transforming  Delmonico's  entire  place  into  a  Ball-room — 
The  New  Year's  Ball  at  the  Metropolitan  Opera  House — 
Last  Words,  367 


MY  FAMILY. 


Society  as  I  have  Found  It. 


CHAPTER  I. 

My  Family  —  My  Mother  an  Angel  of  Beauty  and  Charity 
—  My  Father's  Noble7iess  of  Character — Bicilding 
Bonfires  on  Paradise  Rocks  and  Flying  Kites  from 
PiDgatory  with  Uncle  Sam  Ward — My  Brother  the 
Soldier  —  i\fy  Brother  the  Lawyer. 

Ix  1820  my  mother,  a  beautiful  girl  of 
eighteen  years,  was  introduced  into  New 
York  society  by  her  sister,  Mrs.  Samuel 
Ward,  the  wife  of  Samuel  Ward,  the  bank- 
er, of  the  firm  of  Prime,  Ward  &  Kina. 
She  was  a  crreat  belle  in  tb.e  days  when 
Robert  and  Richard  Ray  and  Prescott 
Hall  were  of  the  jeimesse  dorec  of  this  city. 
In  my  opinion,  she  was  the  most  beautiful, 
Murillo-like  woman  I  have  ever  seen,  and 
she  was  as  orood  as  she  was  beautiful,^ — an 
angel  in  works  of  charity  and  sympathy  for 

3 


4  SOCIETY  AS  I  J/AJ'E  FOVXD  IT. 


her  race.  Charlotte  Corday's  picture  in 
the  Louvre  is  a  picture  of  my  mother. 
The  hkeness  arose  from  the  fact  that  her 
family  were  descended  on  the  maternal  side 
from  the  Corday  family  of  F"rance.  This 
also  accounts  for  all  my  family  being,  from 
time  immemorial,  good  Democrats.  No 
one  was  too  humble  to  be  received  and 
cared  for  and  sympathized  with  by  my 
mother.  Her  pastime  was  by  the  bedside 
of  hospital  patients,  and  in  the  schoolroom 
of  her  children.  She  followed  the  precepts 
of  her  mother's  great-grandfather,  the  Rev. 
Gabriel  Marion  (grandfather  of  Gen.  Fran- 
cis Marion)  as  expressed  in  his  will  to  the 
following  effect :  "  As  to  the  poor,  I  have 
always  treated  them  as  my  brethren.  My 
dear  family  will,  I  know,  follow  my  ex- 
ample." It  also  contained  this  item  :  "  I 
give  her,  my  wife,  my  new  carriage  and 
horses,  that  she  may  visit  her  friends  in 
comfort."  This  ancestor  came  from  Ro- 
chelle  in  a  large  ship  chartered  for  the 
Carolinas    by  several  wealthy  Huguenot 


M  y  FAMJL  y. 


5 


families.  The  lingers  and  Trapiers  and 
others  came  oxer  in  the  same  ship.  lie 
did  not  leave  Trance  em[)ly-handed,  for 
on  his  arrival  in  Carolina  he  bought  a 
plantation  on  Goose  Creek,  near  Charles- 
ton, where  he  was  buried. 

While  a  belle  in  this  city  her  admirers 
were  legion,  until  a  young  Georgian,  in  the 
person  of  my  father,  stepped  in,  and  secured 
the  prize  and  took  her  off  to  Savannah. 
He  was  fresh  from  Princeton  College,  cut 
short  in  his  college  career  by  a  large  fire  in 
Savannah  (his  native  city),  which  burnt  it 
down,  destroying  my  grandfather's  city 
property.  The  old  gentleman,  when  the 
fire  occurred,  refused  to  leave  his  residence 
(now  the  Pulaski  Hotel  ),  and  was  taken 
forcibh'  from  the  burninir  buildinsf  in  his 
chair.  He  then  owned  the  \aluable  busi- 
ness portion  of  the  city,  and  at  once  went 
to  work  to  rebuild.  His  relatives  would 
not  assist  him.  and  so  he  sent  for  his  only 
son,  then  at  college,  and  got  him  to  indorse 
all  his  notes,  and  in  this  way  secured  from 


6  SOCIETY  AS  1  HAVE  FOUXD  IT. 


the  banks  the  money  he  wanted  for  building 
purposes.  He  undertook  too  much,  and  my 
father  bore  for  one-third  of  his  life  a  burden 
of  debt  then  incurred.  Nothing  daunted, 
he  went  to  work  at  the  bar  and  commenced 
life  with  his  beautiful,  young  Northern 
wife. 

At  that  time,  there  was  a  great  prejudice 
against  Northern  people.  My  father's 
mother  never  forgave  my  mother  for  being 
a  Northern  woman,  and  when  she  died, 
thouofh  she  knew  her  son  was  weicrhed 
down  with  his  father's  debts,  insisted  on 
his  freeincj  all  the  neoroes  she  owned  and 
left  him  by  will,  enjoining  him  to  do  this 
as  her  last  dying  request.  It  is  needless  to 
to  say  that  he  did  it,  and  not  only  this,  but 
became  the  guardian  of  those  people  and 
helped  and  cared  for  them  so  long  as  he 
lived.  Being  repeatedly  Mayor  of  the  City 
of  Savannah,  he  was  able  to  protect  them, 
and  so  devoted  were  the  whole  colored  pop- 
ulation to  him,  that  one  Andrew  Marshall, 
the  clergyman  of  the  largest  colored  church 


MV  FAMILY. 


7 


in  the  city  of  Savannah,  offered  up  pra)'ers 
for  him  on  every  Sunday,  as  is  done  in  our 
Episcopal  church  for  the  President  of  the 
United  States.  Blest  with  five  sons  and 
one  daughter,  struggling  to  maintain  them 
by  his  practice  at  the  bar,  this  best  of  fathers 
sent  his  famil\-  North  every  summer,  with 
one  or  two  exceptions,  to  Newport,  R.  I., 
which  at  that  time  was  really  a  Southern 
colony. 

It  was  the  fashion  then  at  Newport  to 
lease  for  the  summer  a  farmer's  house  on 
the  Island,  and  not  live  in  the  town.  Well 
do  I  remember,  with  m}-  Uncle  Sam  Ward 
and  Dr.  Francis,  of  New  York,  and  my 
father,  building  bonfires  on  Paradise  Rocks 
on  the  Fourth  of  July  and  fl)  ing  kites  from 
Purgatory.  The  first  relief  to  this  hard- 
worked  man  was  sending  his  oldest  son  to 
West  Point,  where,  I  will  here  add,  he  did 
the  family  great  credit  by  becoming,  being, 
and  dying  a  noble  soldier  and  Christian. 
Fighting  in  both  armies,  one  may  say, 
though  I  believe  he  was  in  active  service 


8 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


only  in  the  Mexican  War,  having  gradu- 
ated second  in  his  class  at  West  Point  and 
entered  the  Ordnance  Corps;  so  in  jjlace  of 
fighting,  he  was  making  arms,  casting  can- 
non, etc.  His  pride  lay  in  the  fact  that  he 
was  a  soldier.  His  last  request  was  that  the 
Secretary  of  War  should  grant  permission 
for  his  remains  to  be  buried  at  West  Point, 
which  request  was  granted.  My  second 
brother,  Hall,  grew  up  with  the  poet  Milton 
alwa)'s  under  his  arm.  He  was  a  great 
student.  At  the  little  village  of  Springfield, 
Georgia,  where  my  family  had  a  country 
house,  and  where  we  occasionally  passed 
the  summer  in  the  piney  woods,  I  remem- 
ber as  a  boy  of  fifteen  years  of  age,  reading 
the  Declaration  of  Independence  on  the 
Fourth  of  July  from  the  pulpit  of  the  vil- 
lage church  to  the  descendants  of  the  old 
Salzburghers,  who  came  over  soon  after 
Oglethorpe,  and  it  was  before  an  audience 
of  these  piney  woods  farmers,  that,  with  this 
brother,  at  a  meeting  of  our  Debating 
Society  in  this  village,  I  discussed  the  ques- 


I 


MV  FAMIL  Y.  9 

tion,  "  Which  is  the  stronger  passion,  Love 
or  Ambition,"  he  advocating  Ambition,  I 
Love.  I  well  remember  going  for  him,  as 
follows:  "  If  b.is  motto  be  that  of  Hercules 
the  Invincible,  I  assume  for  mine  that  of 
his  opponent,  Venus  the  \'ictorious.  With 
my  sling  and  stone  I  will  enter  this  unequal 
combat  and  thus  hope  to  slay  the  great 
Goliath."  The  twelve  orood  and  true  men 
who  heard  the  discussion  decided  in  my 
favor.  To  the  end  of  his  days  this  brother 
of  mine  was  guided  and  governed  b)'  this 
self-same  ambition  ;  it  made  him  what  he 
became,  a  great  lawyer,  the  lawj  er  of  the 
Pacific  coast  ;  his  boast  to  me  being  that 
he  had  saved  seventeen  lives,  ne\  er  having 
lost  a  murder  case.  I  let  ambition  go,  and 
through  life  and  to  the  present  moment 
swear  by  my  goddess  Venus.  This  brother, 
after  entering  the  Georgia  bar,  started  for 
a  trip  around  the  world.  On  reaching  San 
Francisco  he  heard  of  the  discovery  of 
gold,  and  Commodore  Jones,  then  in  com- 
mand of  our  Pacific  Squadron,  lu'ged  him 


lo  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


to  prosecute  some  sailors  who  had  thrown 
an  officer  overboard  and  deserted,  and  it 
was  this  which  caused  him  to  settle  down 
there  to  the  practice  of  law. 


LAW  AND  HOUSEKEEPING. 


II 


CHAPTER  II. 


My  Nnu  York  Life  —  A  Penurious  Aunt  who  Fed  me 
on  Turkey  —  My  First  Fancy  Ball  —  Spending  One 
Thousand  Dollars  for  a  Costume  —  The  Sc/iermer- 
horns  give  a  Ball  in  Great  Jones  Street  —  Sticking 
a  Man's  Calf  and  Drawing  Blood  —  A  Craze  for 
Dancing  —  /  Study  Law  —  Blackstone  has  a  Rival 
in  Lovely  Southern  Maidens  —  I  go  to  San  Fran- 
cisco in  '50 — Fees  Paid  in  Gold  Dust  —  Fggs  at 
$2  —  ^^y  First  Housekeeping  —  A  faux  pas  at  a 
Reception. 

I  -MVSELK  soon  left  Savannah  for  New 
York  after  Hall's  departure,  residing  there 
in  Tenth  Street  with  an  old  maiden  lady, 
my  relative  and  godmother,  whom  I  always 
felt  would  endow  me  with  all  her  worldly 
goods,  but  who,  I  regret  to  say,  preferred 
the  Presbyterian  church  and  the  Georgia 
Historical  Society  to  myself,  for  between 
them  she  divided  a  million.  At  that  time 
Tenth  Street  was  a  fashionable  street  ;  our 
house  was  a  comfortable,  ordinary  one,  but 
my  ancient  relative  considered  it  a  palace, 
so  that  all  her  visitors  were  taken  from 

13 


14  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

garret  to  cellar  to  view  it.  Occupying  the 
front  room  in  the  third  story,  as  I  would 
hear  these  visitors  making  for  my  room,  I 
often  had  to  scramble  into  the  bath-room 
or  under  the  bed,  to  hide  myself.  Having 
a  large  fortune,  my  relative,  whom  I  called  * 
Aunt  (but  who  was  really  only  my  father's 
cousin),  was  saving  to  meanness  ;  her  plan- 
tations in  the  South  furnished  our  table  ; 
turkeys  came  on  in  barrels.  "  It  was  tur- 
key hot  and  turkey  cold,  turkey  tender,  and 
turkey  tough,  until  at  grace  one  would 
exclaim,  '  I  thank  ye,  Lord,  we've  had 
enough.'  "  As  the  supposed  heir  of  my 
saving  godmother,  the  portals  of  New 
York  society  were  easily  open  to  me,  and  I 
well  remember  my  first  fancy  ball,  given  by 
Mrs.  John  C.  Stevens  in  her  residence  in 
College  Place.  A  company  of  soldiers 
were  called  in  to  drill  on  the  waxed  floors 
to  perfect  them  for  dancing.  A  legacy  of 
a  thousand  dollars  paid  me  by  the  New 
York  Life  Insurance  and  Trust  Company  I 
expended  in  a  fancy  dress,  which  I  flattered 


LA  IV  AND  nOUSEKEEPING. 


15 


nn  sL'lf  was  the  handsomest  and  richest  at 
thr  ball.  I  danced  the  cotillion  with  a  nun, 
a  strange  costume  for  her  to  appear  in,  as 
"  I  wont  be  a  nun  "  was  engraved  on  every 
expression  of  her  face.  She  was  at  that 
day  one  of  the  brightest  and  most  charm- 
ing \oung  women  in  this  city,  and  had  a 
power  of  fascination  rareh^  equaled. 

The  next  great  social  event  that  I  recall 
was  the  great  fanc\'  ball  griven  bv  the 
Schermerhorns  in  their  house  on  the  corner 
of  Great  Jones  Street  and  Lafayette  Place. 
All  the  guests  were  asked  to  appear  in  the 
costume  of  the  period  of  Louis  XV.  The 
house  itself  was  furnished  and  decorated  in 
that  style  for  this  occasion.  No  pains  or 
expense  were  spared.  It  was  intended  to 
be  the  greatest  a^airc  dc  luxe  New  Yorkers 
had  ever  seen.  The  men,  as  Avell  as  the 
women,  vied  with  each  other  in  getting  up 
as  handsome  costumes  as  w^ere  ever  worn 
at  that  luxurious  Court.  The  lace  and 
diamonds  on  the  women  astonished  societ)'. 
All  the  servants  of  the  house  wore  cos- 


1 6  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


tunies,  correct  copies  of  those  worn  at  that 
period.  The  men  in  tights  and  silk  stock- 
ings, for  the  first  time  in  their  hves,  became 
jealous  of  each  other's  calves,  and  in  one 
instance,  a  friend  of  mine,  on  gazing  at  the 
superb  development  in  this  line  of  a  guest, 
doubted  nature's  haviuQ-  bestowed  such 
generous  gifts  on  him  ;  so,  to  satisfy  him- 
self, he  pricked  his  neighbor's  calf  with  his 
sword,  actually  drawing  blood,  but  the 
possessor  of  the  fine  limbs  never  winced  ; 
later  on  he  expressed  forcibly  his  opinion 
of  the  assault.  By  not  wincing  the  impres- 
sion that  he  had  aided  nature  was  con- 
firmed. 

These  two  balls  were  the  greatest  social 
events  that  had  ever  occurred  in  this  city. 
Even  then  subscription  balls  were  the 
fashion.  One  of  the  most  brilliant  was 
c^iven  at  Delmonico's  on  the  corner  of 
Beaver  and  William  streets  (the  old  build- 
ing in  which  the  ball  was  given  is  now  be- 
ing torn  down).  Saracco's  dancing-rooms 
were  then  much   resorted  to.     They  be- 


17 


came  tlie  rage,  and  every  one  was  seized 
with  a  desire  to  perfect  himself  in  danc- 
ing. 

Disgusted  with  book-keeping,  I  resolved 
to  study  law,  and  knowing  that  I  could 
not  do  much  stud\'ing  whilst  flirting  and 
ofoinof  to  balls  ami  dinners,  I  went  South 
to  my  native  city,  took  up  the  second 
volume  of  Blackstone,  committed  it  to 
memory,  passed  an  examination,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  by  one  of  our  ex-min- 
isters to  Austria,  then  a  judge. 

Blackstone  did  not  wholly  absorb  all  my 
time  that  winter.  I  exercised  my  memory 
in  the  morning  and  indulged  my  imagina- 
tion of  an  afternoon,  breathing  soft  words 
to  loveh'  Southern  maidens,  in  the  piney 
groves  which  surround  that  charming  cit)'. 
From  time  immemorial  they  had  alwajs 
o^iven  these  on  Valentine's  Eve  a  Valentine 
party.  I  was  tempted  to  go  to  the  one 
given  that  year.  And  as  I  entered  the 
house  a  basketful  of  sealed  envelopes  was 
handed    me,    one    of   which   I   took  ;  on 


i8 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUA-D  IT. 


breaking  the  seal,  I  found  on  the  card 
the  name  of  a  brilHant,  charming  young 
woman,  whom  I  then  had  a  right  to  claim 
as  my  partner  for  the  evening,  but  to 
whom  I  must  bend  the  knee,  and  express 
interest  and  devotion  to  her  in  a  species  of 
poetical  rhapsody.  As  all  the  young  men 
were  to  go  through  the  same  ordeal,  it  was 
less  embarrassino-.  From  the  time  of  en- 
tering  the  ball-room  until  the  late  hour 
at  which  supper  was  served,  the  guests  in 
the  crowded  rooms  were  laucrhinfj  over  the 
sight  of  each  young  man  dropping  on  one 
knee  before  his  partner  and  presenting 
her  with  a  bouquet  of  flowers,  and  in  low 
and  tender  words  pouring  out  his  soul  iii 
poetry.  When  it  came  my  turn,  I  secured 
a  cushion  and  down  I  went,  the  young 
woman  laughing  immoderately;  but  I,  not 
in  the  least  perturbed,  grasping  my  bou- 
quet of  flowers  with  one  hand  and  placing 
my  other  hand  over  my  heart,  looking  into  ' 
the  depths  of  her  lovely  eyes,  addressed 
to  her  these  words  : 


I. A  ir  AXD  HOUSEKEEPhXG. 


19 


"  These  flowers,  clear  lady,  unto  thee  I  bring, 
Witli  hopes  as  timid  as  the  dawning  sjjring, 
Which  oft  repelled  by  many  a  chilling  blast 
Still  trusts  its  offerings  may  succeed  at  last. 

Recei\  e  thou,  emblem  of  the  rosy  spring, 
Charmer  of  life,  of  every  earthly  thing. 

These  flowers,  which  lovely  as  tlie  tints  of  morn 
Yet  ne'er  can  hope  thy  beauty  to  adorn. 

Oh,  may  they  plead  for  one  who  never  knew 
Perfection's  image  till  he  met  with  you  ; 

Oh,  may  their  fragrance  to  thy  heart  convey 

How  much  he  would,  but  does  not  dare  to  say." 

In  the  mean  time,  while  I  was  dancing 
and  reciting  poetry  to  beautiftil  women, 
ni}'  generous  brother  was  rapidly  making 
money  at  the  bar  in  San  Francisco,  and 
urging  my  father  and  me  to  leave  Georgia 
and  go  to  him,  writing  that  he  was  making- 
more  money  in  two  months'  practice  than 
my  father  received  in  a  )ear.  This  to 
my  conservatix'e  parent  seemed  incredible  ; 
he  shook  his  head,  saying  to  me,  "  It  is 
hard  for  an  old  tree  to  take  root  in  a  new 
soil."  His  friends  of  the  Savannah  bar 
ridiculed  his  entertaining  the  notion  of 
leavino-  Georcyia,  where  his  father  had  been 
a  Judge  of  the  Superior  Court  of  that 


20  S0CIE7'\^  AS  I  HAVE  I-OLWD  IT. 

State  ;  he  himself  had  been  United  States 
District  Attorney,  for  \ears  had  presided 
over  the  Georsjia  Senate,  had  been  nomi- 
nated  for  Governor  of  the  State,  and  for 
a  hfetime  had  been  at  the  head  of  the 
Georgia  bar.  Always  a  Union  man,  op- 
posing Nullification,  he  was  beloved  by  the 
people  of  his  State,  and  his  law  practice  Avas 
then  most  lucrative.  The  idea  of  his  pull- 
ing up  stakes  and  going  to  the  outposts  of 
civilization  seemed  absurd.  He  would  not 
entertain  the  tliought ;  he  laughed  at  my 
brother's  Arabian  Nights  stories  of  his  law 
firm  in  San  Francisco  making  money  at  the 
rate  of  $100,000  a  )'ear.  But  just  here, 
my  father's  purpose  was  suddenly  shaken, 
by  my  brother's  remitting  to  me  a  large 
amount  of  money  in  gold  dust,  and  he,  my 
father,  being  then  paid  five  thousand  dol- 
lars by  the  Bank  of  the  State  of  Georgia 
for  an  argument  made  for  them  before  the 
United  States  Supreme  Court  at  Washing- 
ton. My  gold  dust  was  tangible  evidence 
of  my  brother's  success,  and  as  continual 


21 


dropping  wears  away  a  stone,  so  by  con- 
tinual pleading  I  at  last  persuaded  him  to 
take  me  to  California.  Mournfully  he  sold 
our  old  homestead  and  sadly  closed  up  his 
Savannah  law  office,  and  with  me,  on  the 
13th  of  May,  1850,  left  for  San  Francisco, 
where  in  two  years  he  made  a  comfortable 
fortune,  retired  from  practice  and  went  to 
Europe.  My  brother  Hall's  motto  was, 
"Ten  millions  or  nothincj."  He  made 
himself,  to  my  certain  knowledge,  two  com- 
fortable fortunes.  Grand  speculations  to 
double  my  fathers  fortune  very  soon  made 
inroads  in  it,  and  the  dear  old  gentleman 
to  save  a  remnant  returned  to  this  country. 
As  he  expressed  himself  to  me,  "California 
must  have  a  Circuit  Judge  of  the  United 
States.  I  will  oet  our  Democratic  Cono;ress 
to  pass  a  bill  to  this  effect,  and  will  myself 
return  to  California  as  its  United  States 
Circuit  Judge.  I  do  not  care  to  return  to 
the  practice  of  law  when  I  reach  San  Fran- 
cisco, where,  I  expect  to  find  that,  like  the 
*  fruit  of  the  Dead  Sea,'  my  little  compe- 


22 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


tency  will  turn  into  ashes  at  the  touch. 
Being  on  the  Bench,  I  shall  at  least  have  a 
support";  all  of  which  he  carried  out  to 
the  letter,  and  he  died  devoted  to  the  peo- 
ple of  the  State  of  California. 

Imagine  me  then,  a  well-fed  man,  with 
always  an  appreciative  appetite,  learning, 
on  my  arrival  in  San  Francisco,  that  eggs, 
without  which  I  could  not  breakfast,  cost 
$2  apiece,  a  fowl  $8,  a  turkey  $i6.  One 
week's  mess  bill  for  my  breakfast  and 
dinner  alone  w^as  $225,  and  one  visit  to  my 
doctor  cost  me  $50.  Gloom  settled  upon 
me,  until  my  noble  parent  requested  me 
to  brincr  back  to  the  office  our  first  re- 
tainer  (for  I  was  then  a  member  of  my 
father  and  brother's  law  firm).  It  was 
$4000  in  gold  ounces.  I  put  it  in  a  bag 
and  lugged  it  to  the  office,  and  as  I  laid 
them  ounce  by  ounce  on  my  father's  desk, 
he  danced  a  pirouette,  for  he  was  as  jolly 
»  an  old  fellow  as  ever  lived.    I  went  to 

work  at  once  in  earnest ;  it  struck  me  that 
in  that  country  it  was  "root,  pig,  or  die." 


LA  IV  AND  HOUSEKEEPING. 


23 


My  first  purchase  was  a  desk,  which  com- 
bined the  qualities  of  bed  and  desk.  How 
well  I  remember  the  rats  playing  hide-and- 
seek  over  me  at  night,  and  over  the  large 
barrel  of  English  Brown  Stout  that  I  in- 
vested in  and  placed  in  the  entry  to  console 
myself  with.  After  six  months'  hard  work, 
I  began  to  ease  up,  and  feel  rich.  I  built 
a  small  house  for  myself,  the  front  entry 
4x4,  the  back  entry  the  same,  one  dining- 
room  12x14,  and  one  bedroom,  same 
dimensions.  My  furniture,  just  from  Paris, 
was  acajou  and  white  and  blue  horsehair. 
My  bed-quilt  cost  me  $250  ;  it  was  a  lovely 
Chinese  floss  silk  shawl.  An  Indian  chief, 
calling  to  see  me,  found  me  in  bed,  and 
was  so  delisfhted  with  the  blankets  that  he 
seized  hold  of  them  and  exclaimed,  "  Qtiaii- 
to  pesos  ?  "    (  How  much  did  they  cost  T) 

My  first  row  as  a  householder  was  with 
my  neighbor,  a  Texan.  I  found  my  yard 
fence,  if  put  up,  would  close  up  the  win- 
dows and  front  door  of  his  house.  We  had 
an  interview.     He,  with  strong  adjectives, 


24 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


assured  me  that  he  would  blow  out  my 
brains  if  I  put  up  that  fence.  I  asked  him 
in  reply,  where  he  kept  his  private  burying 
ground.  All  men  then  went  armed  day 
and  night.  For  two  years  I  slept  with  a 
revolver  under  my  pillow.  With  a  strong 
force  of  men  the  next  day,  I  put  up  the 
fence,  and  the  Texan  moved  out  and  sold 
his  lot.     As  our  firm  was  then  makincr 

o 

$100,000  a  )'ear,  our  senior  partner,  my 
father,  asked  me  to  entertain,  for  the  firm, 
our  distinguished  European  clients,  as  he 
himself  had  not  the  time  to  do  so.  His 
injunction  to  me  was,  "  Be  sure,  my  boy, 
that  you  always  invite  nice  people."  I  had 
heard  that  my  dear  old  father  had  on  more 
than  one  occasion  gotten  off  a  witticism  on 
me  as  follows  :  Being  told  how  well  his 
son  kept  house,  he  replied,  "Yes,  he  keeps 
everything  but  the  Ten  Commandments," 
so  I  assured  him  if  he  would  honor  me  with 
his  presence  I  would  have  to  meet  him 
every  respectable  woman  in  the  city,  and  I 
kept  my  word.     Before  we  reached  the 


LA  IV  AND  HOUSEKEEPING. 


25 


turkey,  my  guests  had  so  thoroughly  dined 
that  when  it  appeared,  the  handsomest 
woman  in  the  room  heaved  a  deep  sigh 
and  exclaimed,  "  Oh,  that  I  might  have 
some  of  it  for  hmch  to-morrow!"  Such 
chnners  as  I  then  gave,  I  have  never  seen 
surpassed  anywhere.  It  is  needless  to 
say  that  mv  father  was  intensely  oratified. 
We  had,  tempted  by  exaggerated  accounts 
of  the  gold  fields,  French  cooks  who  re- 
ceived $6000  a  year  as  salar)-.  The  tur- 
key, costly  as  it  was  at  $16,  always  came 
on  table  with  its  feathered  tail  intact,  and 
as  eggs  were  so  expensive,  omelette  soiifflee 
was  always  the  dish  at  dessert.  Two  years 
was  the  length  of  my  stay  in  San  Francisco. 

On  reaching  New  York  in  1852,  from 
California,  I  found  great  objection  made 
to  my  return  there  as  a  married  man, 
and  gracefully  yielded  to  circumstances. 
Though  loath  to  give  up  my  profession 
of  the  law,  I  was  forced  to  make  this 
sacrifice  ;  so  the  moment  I  conckided  to 
give  up  California  and  the  legal  profession, 


26 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


not  wishing'  to  be  idle,  I  went  to  Washing- 
ton and  appHed  to  the  President  for  the 
position  of  Secretary  of  Legation  in  Eng- 
land. The  Georgia,  South  CaroHna,  Vir- 
ginia, and  California  delegations  urged  me 
for  this  appointment ;  Mr.  Buchanan  was 
oroing  to  England  as  Minister.  He  was  a 
warm  friend  of  my  father's,  and,  when  ap- 
proached, expressed  not  only  willingness 
but  gratification  at  having  the  son  of  an 
old  friend  as  his  Secretary  of  Legation, 
and  I  was  to  have  had  the  position.  But 
just  at  this  time,  my  father,  who  had  re- 
turned from  Europe,  wished  to  obtain  from 
President  Pierce  the  appointment  of  Cir- 
cuit Judge  of  the  United  States  for  the 
State  of  California.  He  came  to  me  and 
stated  the  case  as  follows  :  "  My  boy,"  he 
said,  "  the  President  says  he  cannot  give 
two  appointments  to  one  family.  If  you 
go  to  England  as  Buchanan's  Secretary, 
President  Pierce  cannot  make  me  Circuit 
Judge  of  California."  "  Enough  said,"  I 
replied,  "  I  yield  with  pleasure.     I  will  go 


« 


LA  IF  AND  HOUSEKEEPING. 


27 


abroad,  but  not  in  the  diplomatic  service." 
Passing  the  winter  in  Washington,  I  soon 
learned  how  to  ingratiate  mx  self  with  the 
law-makers  of  our  country.  Good  dinners 
and  wine  were  alwa}'s  effective.  And  as  I 
had  the  friendship  of  the  Cahfornia,  New 
York  and  Southern  delegations,  I  was  din- 
ing out  all  the  time,  invited  by  one  man  or 
other  who  had  an  axe  to  grind.  On  these 
occasions,  there  was  always  a  room  pre- 
pared to  receive  a  guest  who  had  indulged 
too  freelv  in  stronor  waters.  Men  then 
drank  in  good  earnest,  a  striking  contrast 
to  the  days  in  which  we  now  li\e,  when 
really,  at  dinner,  people  only  taste  wine, 
but  do  not  drink  it.  I  was  then  placed  on 
the  Committee  of  Management  for  the 
Inaugural  Ball,  and  did  sfood  service  and 
learned  much  from  my  Washington  winter. 

An  amusing  incident  I  must  here  relate. 
Quietly  breakfasting  and  chatting  with  a 
beautiful  woman,  then  a  bride,  who  had 
lived  for  years  in  Washington  as  a  widow, 
she  asked  me  if  I  was  going  to  Corcoran's 


28 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


ball  that  evening,  and  on  my  replying, 
"Yes,  of  course  I  was,"  she  requested  me 
to  accompany  her  husband  and  self,  which 
I  did.  On  enterincy  Mr,  Corcoran's  ball 
room  with  her  on  my  arm,  I  noticed  that 
the  old  gentleman  bowed  very  stififly  to  us  ; 
however,  I  paid  no  attention  to  this  and 
went  on  dancing,  and  escorting  through 
the  rooms  my  fair  partner,  from  whom  I 
had  no  sooner  been  separated  than  my 
host  slapped  me  on  the  shoulder  with, 
"  My  dear  young  man,  I  know  you  did  not 
know  it,  but  the  lady  you  have  just  had  on 
your  arm  is  not  only  not  a  guest  of  mine, 
but  this  morning  I  positively  refused  to 
send  her  an  invitation  to  this  ball."  For- 
tunately I  had  brought  letters  to  this  dis- 
tinguished man,  so  seeing  my  annoyance, 
he  patted  me  on  the  shoulder  and  said, 
"My  boy,  this  is  not  an  unusual  occurrence 
in  this  city;  but  let  it  be  a  warning  to  you 
to  take  care  hereafter  whom  you  bring  to  a 
friend's  house." 


INTRODUCTION 
TO  LONDON  SPORTS. 


CHAPTER  III. 


Introduction  to  London  Sports  —  A  Dog  Fight  in  the 
Suburbs  —  Sporting  Ladies  —  The  Drawing  of  the 
Badger  —  My  Host  gets  Gloriously  Drunk  —  Visit  to 
Her  Majesty's  Kitchen  —  Dinner  with  the  Chef  of 
Windsor  Castle  —  /  taste  ^  font  ilia  Sherry  for  the  First 
Time  —  "A  Shilling  to  Pay  for  the  '  Times.'  " 

After  my  marriage  I  took  up  my  resi- 
dence in  Newport,  buying  a  farm  on  Nar- 
ragansett  Bay  and  turning  farmer  in  good 
earnest.  I  planted  out  10,000  trees  on  that 
farm  and  then  went  to  Europe  to  let  them 
grow,  expecting  a  forest  on  my  return,  but 
I  found  only  one  of  them  struggling  for 
existence  three  years  later.  In  London,  I 
met  a  Californian,  in  with  all  the  sporting 
world,  on  intimate  terms  with  the  champion 
prize-fighter  of  England,  the  Queen's  pages, 
Tattersall's  and  others.  He  sucroested 
that  if  I  would  defray  the  expense,  he 
would  show  me  London  as  no  American 
had  ever  seen  it.     Agreeing  to  do  this,  I 


32  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


was  taken  to  a  swell  tailor  in  Regent  Street, 
to  put  me,  as  he  expressed  it,  "  in  proper 
rig."  My  first  introduction  to  London  life 
was  dining  out  in  the  suburbs  to  see  a  doe- 
fight,  and  sup  at  a  Regent  Street  dry-goods 
merchant's  residence.  I  was  introduced 
as  an  American  landed  proprietor.  Mine 
host,  I  was  told,  spent  twelve  thousand 
pounds,  i.e.  $60,000  a  year,  on  his  estab- 
lishment. He  was  an  enthusiast  in  his 
way,  an  old  sport.  The  women  whom  I 
was  invited  to  meet  looked  like  six-footers  ; 
the  hall  of  the  house  and  the  sitting-rooms 
were  filled  with  stuffed  bull-terriers,  prize 
dogs,  that  had  done  good  service.  We 
walked  through  beautifully  laid-out  grounds 
to  a  miniature  ornamental  villa  which  con- 
tained a  rat  pit,  and  there  we  saw  a  contest 
between  what  seemed  to  me  a  myriad  of 
rats  and  a  bull-terrier.  The  latter's  work 
was  expeditious.  We  surrounded  the  pit, 
each  one  with  his  watch  in  hand  timing  the 
dog's  work,  which  he  easily  accomplished 
in  the  allotted  time,  killing  all  the  rats, 


INTRODUCTION  TO  LONDON  SPORTS.  33 


which  called  forth  great  applause.  From 
this  pit  we  went  to  another,  where  we  saw 
the  drawing-  of  the  badger,  a  very  amusing 
sicrht.  riiere  was  a  lonq-  narrow  box  with  a 
trap-door,  by  which  the  badger  was  shut  in  ; 
up  went  the  door,  in  went  the  terrier  ;  he 
seized  the  badger  by  the  ear  and  pulled  him 
out  of  his  box  and  around  the  pit,  the  bad- 
ger held  back  with  all  his  might  ;  should 
the  dog  fail  to  catch  the  badger  by  the  ear, 
the  badger  would  kill  him.  Again,  we  as- 
sembled around  a  third  pit,  to  see  a  dog- 
fight, and  saw  fight  after  fight  between  these 
bull-terriers,  to  me  a  diso^usting  sight,  but 
the  women  shouted  with  delight,  and  kept 
incessantly  calling  "Time,  sir;  time,  sir!" 
Larcje  bets  were  made  on  the  result.  At 
midnight  we  went  to  supper.  I  sat  next  to 
the  champion  prize-fighter  of  England, 
who  informed  me  that  a  countr}'man  of 
mine  had  died  in  his  arms  after  a  prize- 
fight. Such  drinkino-  I  never  saw  before 
or  since;  the  host,  calling  for  bumper  after 
bumper,  insisted  on  every  one  draining  his 


34 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


glass.  I  skillfully  threw  my  wine  under  the 
table.  The  host  and  all  the  company  were 
soon  intoxicated.  The  footmen  in  orreen 
and  cjold  liveries  never  cracked  a  smile. 

o 

The  master,  after  a  bumper,  would  fall  for- 
ward on  the  table,  smashinof  everythinof. 
His  butler  picked  him  up  and  replaced 
him  in  his  chair.  This  was  kept  up  until 
3  A.M.,  when  with  pleasure  I  slipped  out 
and  was  off  in  my  hansom  for  London. 

My  visit  to  Windsor  Castle,  dining  at  the 
village  inn  with  Her  Majesty's  chef,  and  the 
keeper  of  her  jewel  room,  was  interesting. 
I  saw  the  old,  tall  doorkeeper,  with  his  long 
staff,  sitting  at  the  door  of  the  servants' 
hall.  I  saw  Her  Majesty's  kitchen  and  the 
roasts  for  all  living  in  the  castle, — at  least 
twenty  separate  pieces  turning  on  a  spit. 
Then  I  examined  a  large,  hot,  steel  table 
on  which  any  cooked  article  being  placed 
would  stay  hot  as  long  as  it  remained 
there.  The  chef  told  me  a  German  prince, 
when  informed  of  its  price,  said  it  would 
take  all  his  yearly  revenue  to  pay  for  it. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  LONDON  SPORTS.  35 


Then  I  saw  Her  Majesty's  jewel  room  ;  the 
walls  wainscoted,  as  it  were,  with  gold 
plates ;  the  large  gold  bowl,  which  looks 
like  a  small  bath-tub,  from  which  the 
Prince  of  Wales  was  baptized,  stood  in  the 
dining-room.  I  saw  Prince  Albert  and  the 
Prince  of  Wales  that  morning  shooting 
pheasants,  alongside  of  the  Windsor  Long 
Walk,  and  stood  within  a  few  yards  of  them. 
I  feel  sure  we  ate,  that  day,  at  the  inn,  the 
pheasants  that  had  been  shot  by  Prince 
Albert.  I  visited  Her  Majesty's  model 
farm,  and  found  that  all  the  flax-seed 
cake  for  the  cattle  was  imported  from 
America.  The  simple  cognomen,  American 
Landed  Proprietor,  was  "open  sesame" 
to  me  everywhere,  accompanied  as  I  was  by 
one  of  her  Majesty's  pages.  In  London, 
of  an  evening,  we  went  to  Evans's,  a  sort 
of  public  hall  where  one  took  beer  and 
listened  to  comic  songs.  Jubber,  a  wine 
merchant,  kept  the  hotel  where  I  lodged. 
As  a  celebrated  London  physician  was 
dining  with  me,  I  asked  for  the  palest  and 


36 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


most  delicate  sherry  to  be  found  in  Lon- 
don, regardless  of  cost,  to  be  served  that 
day,  at  my  dinner.  He  looked  at  me  and 
smiled,  seeing  I  was  quite  a  young  man, 
saying,  "If  I  give  it  to  you,  you  will  not 
drink  it."  "Send  me  the  sherry,"  I  replied, 
"and  you  will  see."  The  result  was  I  got 
a  delicious  Montilla  sherry  and  sent  a  butt 
of  it  to  America.  This  was  my  first  ac- 
quaintance with  Montilla  sherry,  the  most 
delicate  wine  that  I  know  of,  to  be  served 
from  soup  to  dessert. 

Before  getting  through  with  my  sporting 
friend,  after  paying  all  his  expenses  and 
remunerating  him  liberally  for  his  services, 
as  I  was  about  to  cross  the  Channel,  he 
came  up  to  me  and  said,  "  Mc,  I  want  you 
to  lend  me  some  money."  I  saw  by  his 
face  he  was  in  earnest,  and  thought  that  he 
was  about  to  make  a  demand  for  a  laro^e 
amount.  So,  equally  serious,  I  replied,  "  It 
is  out  of  the  question,  my  dear  fellow  ;  I 
am  here  in  a  strange  country  with  my 
family  and  have  no  money  to  lend."  He 


INTRODUCTION  TO  LONDON  SPORTS.  37 


roared,  "Why,  all  I  wanted  was  a  shil- 
ling to  pay  for  the  Times"  ■which  made 
me  feel  very  sheepish.  That  was  the  last 
I  saw  of  him.  When  two  years  later  I 
returned  to  London,  I  found  he  had  con- 
scientiously paid  no  bills,  and,  strange  to 
relate,  his  hotel  keeper  and  tailors  seemed 
fully  compensated  for  the  food  and  raiment 
they  had  furnished  him,  by  his  sending 
them  a  few  valueless  colored  plates  of 
sporting  scenes  in  this  country. 


f 


A  WINTER  IN  ITALY. 


39 


4» 


CHAPTER  IV. 

A  Winter  in  Florence  and  Rome — Cheap  Living  and 
Good  Cooking  —  IValniit-fed  Tier  keys  —  The  Grand 
Duke  of  Tuscany' s  Ball — An  American  Girl  who 
Elbowed  the  King —  What  a  Ball  Supper  Should 
be  —  Ball  to  the  Archduke  of  Tuscany — "  'The  Duke 
of  Pennsylva7iia" — Following  the  Hounds  on  the 
Cainpagna  —  The  American  Minister  Snubs  American 
Gentlemen. 

I  LANDED  in  France,  not  knowincr  how  to 
speak  the  language,  and  only  remembering 
a  few  French  words  learned  in  childhood. 
It  was  the  year  of  the  Paris  Exposition  of 
1857  ;  all  the  hotels  were  full.  The  Meurice 
Hotel  people  sent  me  off  to  a  neighboring 
house,  where  we  lodged  in  the  ninth  story. 
I  saw  the  baptism  of  the  Prince  Imperial, 
and  on  that  occasion,  and  later  on  in 
Rome,  at  the  Carnival,  saw  the  handsomest 
•women  I  had  )'et  seen  in  Europe.  We 
then  made  for  Florence,  and  there,  getting 
a  most  captivating  little  apartment,  on  the 
Arno,  kept  house,  and  if  it  had  not  been  for 

41 


42  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


the  terrible  and  incessant  winds  called  the 
trainontana  would  probably  have  passed 
our  days  there.  I  had  the  most  admirable 
cook,  and  had  never  lived  as  well.  Then 
the  economy  of  the  thing;  it  cost  nothing 
to  live.  I  paid  the  fellow  twenty-four 
pauls  ($2.40)  a  day.  For  this  sum  he  gave 
us  breakfast  and  exquisite  dinners.  For 
each  extra  guest,  at  dinner,  I  paid  a  few 
pauls  ;  if  I  gave  a  dinner  party  he  hired 
for  me  as  handsome  a  service  of  silver 
plate  as  I  have  ever  seen.  His  whole 
kitchen  seemed  to  consist  of  half  a  dozen 
pots  and  pans,  and  everything  was  cooked 
by  charcoal. 

His  manner  of  roasting  a  turkey  was 
indeed  novel ;  he  placed  his  bird  on  a  spit, 
put  it  in  an  iron  pot,  covered  it  with  hot 
coals  top  and  bottom,  and  then  kept  turn- 
ing the  spit  incessantly  and  basting  the 
bird.  Such  a  perfect  roast  I  have  never 
before  or  since  eaten.  I  shall  speak  later 
on  of  the  Newport  turkey  and  the  South- 
ern barnyard-fed  turkey,  but  they  are  not 


A  WINTER  IN  ITALY.  43 

a  circumstance  to  the  Florentine  walnut- 
fed  turkey.  In  Florence,  at  the  markets, 
all  turke)'S  and  fowls  were  cut  up  and  sold, 
not  as  a  whole,  but  piece  by  piece.  For 
instance,  vou  saw  on  the  marble  slabs  the 
breasts  of  chickens,  the  wings  of  chick- 
ens, the  legs  of  chickens  ;  the  same  with 
turkeys.  To  get  an  entire  bird,  }'ou  had 
to  order  him  ahead,  so  that  a  few  days 
before  Christmas,  as  we  came  home  from 
our  drive,  w^e  found  a  superb  turkey  strutt- 
ing throufjh  the  drawing-room,  the  largest 
creature  I  had  ever  seen,  weighing  twenty- 
five  pounds.  W  hen  he  was  served,  the 
walnuts  he  had  eaten  could  be  seen  all 
over  his  back  in  large,  round  yellow  spots 
of  fat.  As  he  came  on  the  table,  he  was 
indeed  a  sight  to  behold  ;  the  skin,  as  it 
were,  mahogany  color  and  crisp,  his  flesh 
partaking  of  the  flavor  of  the  walnut, 
would  have  satisfied  Lucullus. 

At  that  period  I  worshipped  doctors  ;  my 
theory  then  was  that  you  owed  your  exist- 
ence to  them,  that  they  kept  you  in  the 


44  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUXD  IT. 


world,  and  not  to  have  a  doctor  within  call 
was  to  place  yourself  in  danger  of  imme- 
diate and  sudden  death  ;  so  the  first  man  I 
cultivated  in  Florence  was  the  EncrHsh  doc- 
tor.  He  came  to  see  me  every  day  ;  it  was 
indeed  a  luxury  ;  his  fee  was  two  dollars. 
We  became  great  friends,  and  as  he  was 
the  Court  physician,  he  got  me  invitations 
to  all  the  balls.  The  Grand  Duke  of  Tus- 
cany, then  the  richest  sovereign  in  Europe, 
gave  a  ball  every  fortnight  at  the  Pitti  Pal- 
ace. It  was  said  that  the  Italians  lived 
on  chestnuts  and  air  between  these  sup- 
pers, and,  like  the  bear,  laid  in  such  a 
supply  of  food  at  them  as  comfortably  to 
carry  them  through  from  one  entertain- 
ment to  the  other.  Certainly  such  feasting 
I  had  never  before  seen.  The  number  of 
rooms  thrown  open  really  confused  one,  it 
was  hard  not  to  lose  one's  way.  All  the 
guests  were  assembled,  and  grouped  in  the 
form  of  a  circle,  in  the  largest  of  these 
salons,  when  the  grand  ducal  party  entered. 
The  minister  of  each  foreign  country  stood 


A  WINTER  I.V  ITALY. 


45 


at  the  head  of  liis  little  band  of  country- 
men and  countrywomen  who  were  to  be 
presented.  The  Grand  Duke,  Archduke, 
and  suite  passed  from  group  to  group. 
The  presentation  over,  the  ball  began  in 
earnest.  All  waited  until  the  Archduke 
started  in  the  dance,  and  as  he  waltzed  by 
you,  )'ou  followed.  When  he  stopped 
dancing,  all  stopped. 

I  remember,  at  one  of  these  balls,  danc- 
inor  with  an  American  a  strikinoh' 

handsome  woman,  a  great  Stonington 
belle.  As  we  waltzed  by  the  King  of 
Bavaria,  I  felt  a  hand  placed  on  my  shoul- 
der, and  a  voice  exclaimed,  "Ulais,  Mon- 
sieur, ccst  le  rot";  I  stopped  at  once,  and 
hastily  inquired  of  my  fair  partner,  "  What 
is  it?"  She  replied,  "I  did  it,  I  was  de- 
termined to  do  it.  As  I  passed  the  King  I 
punched  him  in  the  ribs  with  my  elbow. 
Now  I  am  satisfied."  I  rushed  up  to  the 
King  and  Grand  Chamberlain,  saying, 
Millc  pardons,  mille  pardons,''  and  the 
affair  passed  over,  but  I  soon  disposed  of 


46 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


the  young  woman  and  never  "  attempted 
her  again."  The  diamonds  the  women 
wore  amazed  me.  You  see  nothintr  in 
this  country  like  the  tiaras  of  diamonds  I 
saw  at  this  ball ;  tiara  after  tiara,  the  whole 
head  blazing  with  diamonds,  and  yet  there 
was  but  little  beauty. 

It  was  here  that  I  first  learned  what  a 
ball  supper  should  be,  and  what  were  the 
proper  mural  decorations  for  a  ball-room 
and  the  halls  opening  into  it.  The  supper 
system  was  perfect.  In  6ne  salon,  large 
tables  for  coffee,  tea,  chocolate,  and  cakes. 
In  another,  tables  covered  simply  with  ices 
and  other  light  refreshments,  foie  gras, 
sandwiches,  etc.  In  the  grand  supper 
room,  the  whole  of  the  wall  of  one  side 
of  the  room,  from  floor  almost  to  ceiling, 
was  covered  with  shelves,  on  which  every 
imaginable  dish  was  placed,  hot  and  cold. 
The  table  in  front  of  these  shelves  was  lined 
with  servants  in  livery,  and  simply  loaded 
with  empty  plates  and  napkins  to  serve 
the  supper  on.     The   favorite  and  most 


t 


A  WnVTER  IN  ITALY.  47 

prized  dishes  at  all  these  suppers  Avas  cold 
sturgeon  (a  fish  we  never  eat),  and  the 
most  prized  fruit  the  hot-house  pineapple, 
with  all  its  leaves,  and  to  the  eve  seem- 
ingly  growing.  Opposite  the  supper  table, 
in  another  part  of  the  room,  the  wines 
were  served,  all  by  themselves,  and  there 
was,  it  appears  to  me,  every  wine  grown  in 
any  quarter  of  the  globe.  Everything  was 
abundant  and  lavish,  and  the  whole  affair 
was  most  imposing. 

That  winter  the  Archduke  of  Tuscany 
married  one  of  the  princesses  of  Bavaria, 
and  the  Austrian  Minister  gave  them  a 
ball,  which  I  attended.  The  effect  produced 
in  approaching  his  palace,  all  the  streets 
illuminated  by  immense  flaring  torches  at- 
tached to  the  house,  was  grand.  The  ball- 
room was  superb.  From  the  ceiling  hung, 
not  one  or  two,  but  literallv  fiftv  or  more 
chandeliers  of  glass,  with  long  prisms  dan- 
gling from  them.  The  women  were  not 
handsome,  but  what  most  struck  me  was 
the  freshness  of  their  toilets.    They  all 


48 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


looked  new,  as  if  made  for  the  occasion  ; 
not  so  elaborate,  but  so  fresh  and  Hght  and 
delicate.  I  noticed  that  the  royal  party 
supped  in  a  room  by  themselves,  always 
attended  by  their  host. 

As  I  was  strollinof  throuo^h  the  rooms, 
my  host,  the  Austrian  Minister,  approached 
me  and  said,  "  I  see  I  have  another  Ameri- 
can as  a  guest  to-night,  and  he  is  decor- 
ated. Will  you  kindly  tell  me  what  his 
decoration  is?"  "  I  really  do  not  know,"  I 
replied  ;  "  I  will  present  myself  to  him  and 
ask." 

We  approached  my  countryman  togeth- 
er, and,  after  a  few  words,  the  minister 
most  courteously  put  the  question  to  him. 
He  drew  himself  up  and  said,  "  Sir,  my 
country  is  a  Republic ;  if  it  had  been  a 
Monarchy,  I  would  have  been  the  Duke 
of  Pennsylvania.  The  Order  I  wear  is 
that  of  The  Cincinnati."  The  minister, 
deeply  impressed,  withdrew,  and  I  intensely 
enjoyed  the  little  scene. 

After  the  great  works  of  art,  what  most 


A  WIXTER  IX  ITALY. 


49 


impressed  me  in^  Florence  were  the  im- 
mense, orderly  crowds  seen  on  all  public 
occasions,  a  living  mass  of  humanity,  as  far 
as  the  eye  could  see.  No  jostling  or  shov- 
ing, but  human  beings  tilling  up  every  inch 
of  space  between  the  carriage  wheels,  as 
our  horses,  on  a  walk,  dragged  our  carriage 
throucrh  them. 

The  most  charming  spot  on  earth  for  the 
last  of  winter  and  the  spring  months  is  the 
city  of  Rome.  We  went  there  under  most 
favorable  circumstances.  A  kind  friend 
had  leased  an  apartment  for  us  in  the  \'ia 
Greg-oriana,  and  we  found  Rome  full  of  the 
ci'cme  de  la  crcmc  of  New  York  society. 
In  Nazzari  we  had  another  Delmonico,  and 
we  kept  dining  and  wining  each  other  daih". 
Here  I  made  intimacies  that  have  lasted 
me  through  life.  I  followed  the  hounds  on 
the  Campagna,  and  was  amused  at  the 
nonchalance  of  the  vouno:  Italian  swells 
as  they  would  attempt  a  high  Campagna 
fence,  tumble  off  invariably,  remount,  and 
go  at  it  again.    They  were  a  handsome  set 


5° 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


of  men,  as  plucky  as  they  were  handsome. 
I  myself  found  "  discretion  the  better  part 
•  of  valor,"  and  would  quietly  take  to  the 
road  when  I  met  a  formidable  jump,  but  I 
lived  on  horseback  and  enjoy  ed  every  hour. 
Though  carrying  letters  to  our  American 
Minister,  then  resident  at  Rome,  I  gave  his 
legation  a  wide  berth,  as  I  had  heard  that 
our  distinguished  Representati  v^e  was  in  the 
habit  of  inviting  Italians  to  meet  Italians 
and  Americans  to  meet  only  Americans  at 
his  house  ;  when  asked  his  reason  for  this, 
he  replied  :  "  I  have  the  greatest  admira- 
tion for  my  countrymen  :  they  are  enter- 
prising, money  getting,  in  fact,  a  wonderful 
nation,  but  there  is  not  a  gentleman  among 
them."  Hearinof  this,  I  resolved  he  should 
get  no  chance  to  meet  me  and  pass  on  my 
merits. 

Several  of  our  handsomest  New  York 
women  were  then  having  their  busts  sculp- 
tured in  marble  ;  as  you  saw  them  first  in 
the  clay  you  found  them  more  attractive. 
Gibson    for   the   first   time   colored  his 


A  WINTER  IiY  ITALY.  51 

Venus  ;  it  added  warmth  to  it,  and  I  thought 
improved  it. 

The  blessing-  of  the  multitude  by  the 
Pope  from  the  balcony  of  St.  Peter's,  under 
a  canopy,  with  the  emblematic  peacock 
feathers  held  on  either  side  of  him,  the 
illumination  of  St.  Peter's,  and  the  fire- 
Avorks  at  Easter  were  most  impressive. 
But  I  shall  attempt  no  description  of 
Rome.  Nowhere  in  the  world  can  you 
see  such  a  display. 


GERMANY  AND  THE  ALPS. 


53 


CHAPTER  V. 


Summer  in  Baden-Baden — The  Late  Emperor  WiU 
liam  no  Judge  of  Wine  —  My  Irish  Doctor  —  Hii 
Horror  of  Water  —  How  an  American  Girl  Tried  to 
Captivate  Him —  The  Louisiana  Judge  —  /  Win  the 
Toss  and  Get  the  Mule —  The  Judge  "fixes  "  his  Pony 
—  The  "  Pike  Ballet." 

We  passed  our  summer  at  Baden-Baden 
and  literally  lived  there  in  the  open  air. 
Opposite  to  my  apartment,  Prince  Fursten- 
burg  of  Vienna  had  his  hotel  :  from  him 
and  his  suite  I  learned  how  to  spend  the 
summer  months.  At  early  dawn  they 
were  out  in  the  saddle  for  a  canter  ;  at  ten 
they  went  for  a  drive  down  the  Allee  Lich- 
tenthal  and  through  shady  woods,  nowhere 
seen  as  at  Baden-Baden.  They  would  stop 
and  breakfast  in  the  open  air  at  twelve 
noon,  again  drive  in  the  afternoon,  and  dine 
at  the  Kursaal  at  six.  They  kept  at  least 
twenty-five  horses.  We  dined  daily  within 
a  table  or  two  of   the    then    Prince  of 

55 


5 6  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

Prussia,  afterwards  the  Emperor  William, 
whom  I  soon  discovered  was  no  judge  of 
wine,  as  I  drank  the  best  and  he  was  evi- 
dently indifferent  to  it.  When  you  see  a 
man  sip  his  wine  and  linger  over  it,  that 
evidences  his  appreciation  of  it;  but  when 
you  see  him  gulp  it  down,  as  the  Prince  did 
his,  you  see  that  he  is  no  connoisseur. 
But  I  must  say  here,  I  had  an  intense  ad- 
miration for  him.  His  habit  of  walking 
two  hours  under  the  trees  of  the  Allee 
Lichtenthal  was  also  mine,  and  it  was  with 
pleasure  I  bowed  most  respectfully  to  him 
day  by  day. 

Being  anxious  to  cross  every  Alpine 
pass,  I  found  a  distinguished  physician 
who  lived  at  Pau,  France,  on  account 
of  his  health,  and  had  there  the  practice 
of  the  place  during  the  winter  months,  and 
who  was,  necessarily,  idle  in  summer,  as 
Pau  was  then  deserted.  Still  believing  in 
doctors,  I  engaged  him  to  travel  with  me 
for  two  months  as  my  physician.  I  agreed 
to  give  him  a  bottle  of  1848  Latour  for  his 


1 


GERMANY  AXD   THE  ALPS. 


57 


dinner  daily,  pay  his  expenses,  and  to  give 
him  a  medical  fee  such  as  I  saw  fit  at  the 
end  of  our  trip.  He  was  indeed  a  man 
amonsf  men.  All  I  can  sav  is  that  when 
we  parted  and  I  handed  him  his  fee,  the 
tears  came  into  his  eyes  ;  he  grasped  my 
hands,  swearing-  eternal  friendship.  This 
doctor  made  a  new  man  of  me.  "  Throw 
ph)'sic  to  the  dogs,"  was  his  motto  ;  "  you 
will  never  die  :  you  will  in  the  end  have  to 
be  shot  to  get  )'ou  out  of  the  world  ;  air 
and  exercise  is  all  you  want  :  eat  slowly 
and  do  not  deluge  yourself  with  water  at 
dinner."  Of  water  he  had  a  holy  horror. 
"  Drink  what  good  wine  )  ou  wish  and  let 
Avater  alone."  As  I  had  the  luxury  of  a 
private  physician,  a  friend  from  Louisiana 
suggested  joining  m)'  party  with  his  two 
young  daughters.  My  Irish  doctor  was  the 
most  sensitive  of  men.  One  day  I  found 
he  could  eat  no  breakfast.  I  sympathized 
with  him  and  asked  him  the  cause.  He 
replied,  "  My  dear  boy,  the  habits  of  your 
•American  women.     I   came  down    to  the 


5 8  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


breakfast  room  this  morninof  and  there  I 
found  the  oldest  of  the  Judge's  daughters 
with  her  back  hair  down  and  the  younger 
one  combiner  it.  This  settled  me."  I 
assured  him  this  was  not  the  national  cus- 
tom with  American  women.  The  young 
woman  was  simply  trying  to  captivate  him 
by  her  lovely,  long,  flowing  tresses.  The 
doctor  was  a  character.  On  another  oc- 
casion a  Frenchman  Hohted  a  cio^ar  in  our 
railway  compartment.  The  Doctor  detested 
cio-ar  smoke,  and  as  there  was  a  large  sign 
in  the  car,  in  French,  forbidding  smoking, 
he  touched  the  Frenchman  and  pointed  to 
the  sign.  The  Frenchman  simply  smiled 
blandly.  The  train  stopping,  the  conduc- 
tor opened  our  door,  when  the  Frenchman 
quietly  slipped  two  francs  into  his  hands, 
saying  in  French,  "  Of  course  I  can  smoke 
here,  that  sign  is  obsolete,  is  it  not?" 
The  conductor  replied,  "  Oh,  yes,"  and  on 
we  went.  My  Irishman  got  up  and  com- 
menced taking  his  coat  off.  "  What  are 
vou  ofoinof  to  do?"  exclaimed  the  French- 


GERMANY  AND   THE  ALPS. 


59 


man.  "  Why,  throw  you  out  of  that  win- 
dow if  you  do  not  at  once  throw  that  cigar 
away."  There  was  no  mistaking  the  Doc- 
tor's meaning,  so  the  cigar  went  out  and 
the  Frenchman  staid  in. 

My  traveling  Louisiana  friend  liad  a 
charming  way  of  suggesting  each  morning, 
as  we  paid  our  hotel  bills,  that  we  should 
toss  up  a  five-franc  piece  and  decide,  by 
heads  and  tails,  who  was  to  pay  the  bill. 
I  did  this  once  or  twice,  when  I  found,  as 
he  always  won  and  I  lost,  it  was  a  losing 
business  for  me  ;  but  on  another  occasion 
was  forced  into  the  plan.  To  ascend  the 
mountain  at  Lugano,  three  wretched  beasts 
were  brought  us  by  the  Italian  boys  to 
mount  for  the  ascent.  The  Judge  insisted 
on  tossing  up  a  five-franc  piece  for  choice 
of  animals.  I  was  compelled  to  give  in  and 
accede  to  his  suggestion,  and  bv  great  cjood 
luck  won  first  choice.  My  friend,  the 
Judge,  forbade  the  Doctor  advising  me  as 
to  the  animal  I  should  take,  as  he  knew  him 
to  be  a  good  judge  of  horses.    There  was  a 


6o  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


feeble,  worthless  horse  that  literally  could 
carry  no  one  ;  his  back  all  raw  ;  a  vicious 
mule  who  bit  and  kicked,  and  a  stone  blind 
pony  that  would  not  go.  With  my  experi- 
ence of  mules  in  the  South,  knowing  what 
sure-footed  creatures  they  were,  I  chose  the 
mule,  had  him  blindfolded,  mounted  him, 
and  off  I  went.  After  waitincr  an  hour  on 
the  summit,  the  Judge  appeared,  coat  and 
hat  gone,  and  swearing  terribly  that  he 
would  prosecute  the  canton  for  his  treat- 
ment, and  horsewhip  the  Italian  boys.  He 
had  let  the  horse  go,  and  footed  it.  I  soon 
slipped  away  on  my  mule,  letting  the  irate 
Louisianian  and  the  Irishman  settle  it,  on 
top  of  the,  mountain,  how  they  were  to 
have  satisfaction  out  of  the  government  for 
permitting  such  beasts  to  be  imposed  upon 
travelers.  I  was  two-thirds  down  the 
mountain  when  I  looked  behind  me  and 
heard  the  most  terrible  shouts,  and  saw  the 
Irishman  clinging  to  the  pony,  over  whom 
he  had  lost  all  control,  and  the  Judge  hang- 
ing on  by  the  pony's  tail,  all  coming  down 


GERMANY  AND  THE  ALPS.  6i 

 ,  

at  a  terrific  pace.  The  pony  was  at  first 
gentle,  but  it  appears  would  not  go  beyond 
a  walk.  The  Judge  hung  on  to  his  tail  to 
guide  himself  down  the  mountain,  and  find- 
imr  he  would  not  (jo  fast  enough  to  suit 
them,  he  assured  the  Irishman  he  would 
fix  him,  and  immediatel)' stuck  his  penknife 
into  the  beast's  tail.  "  Fix  him,"  he  did, 
for  the  creature  was  so  terrified  he  dashed 
off  at  a  break-neck  pace,  and  the  Judge, 
not  wishinof  to  be  left  alone  on  the  moun- 
tain,  had  to  hang  on  by  the  tail  and  be 
dragged  along  at  lightning  speed.  These 
beasts  alone  knew  the  way  down  ;  once 
parted  from  them,  they  were  lost,  for  the 
Italian  boys  who  had  furnished  them  had 
long  since  fled  from  the  Judge's  wrath. 
The  Judge  and  the  Doctor  forbade  my  pay- 
ing the  hotel  bill,  and  I  had  to  do  it  sur- 
reptitiously. 

My  doctor  (who  was  a  victim  to  rheuma- 
tism) called  my  attention  to  the  fact  that 
on  the  summit  of  every  Alpine  pass  we 
crossed,  after  all  other  vegetation  ceased. 


62 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


the  aconite  plant  grew,  showing  nature  had 
provided  there  a  remedy  for  the  disease 
which  the  severity  of  the  climate  developed 
in  man.  My  Irish  friend,  living  far  from 
the  sea,  had  a  passion  for  all  fish  but  pike, 
which  he  detested,  and  which  was  daily 
served  to  us  wherever  we  went ;  finally, 
reaching  Berlin,  he  insisted  on  having  sea 
fish.  It  was  promised  us,  but,  lo  and  be- 
hold !  when  dinner  was  served,  in  came  the 
pike,  with  the  apology  that  no  other  fish 
could  then  be  had  in  the  city.  After  din- 
ner we  went  to  the  opera,  and  there,  in  the 
ballet  (superbly  done  as  it  was),  were  at 
least  one  hundred  pike  dancing  on  the 
stage,  which  so  upset  my  friend  that  he 
seized  his  hat  in  a  rage  and  left  the  house. 

o 


WINTER  IN  PAU. 


63 


CHAPTER  VI. 


Winter  in  Pan  —  /  Hire  a  Perfect  Villa  for  $800  a 
year  —  Luxury  at  Small  Cost  —  /  Learn  Hot.u  to  Give 
Dinners  —  Fraternizing  with  the  Bordeaux  Wine 
Merchants —  The  Judge's  Wild  Scheme — /  Get  Him 
up  a  Dinner  —  General  Bosquet —  The  Pau  Hunt  — 
The  Frenchmen  Wear  Beautiful  Pink  Coats  but  their 
Horses  Wont  Jump  —  Only  the  General  Took  the 
Ditch. 

After  you  have  been  a  little  while  in 
Europe  you  are  seized  with  a  desire  to 
have  a  house  of  your  own,  to  enjoy  home 
comforts.  Your  loss  of  individuality  comes 
over  you.  In  Paris  you  feel  particularly 
lost,  and  as  this  feeling;  increased  on  me  I 
resolved  to  go  to  Pau,  take  a  house,  and 
winter  there.  The  Duchess  of  Hamilton 
had  abandoned  the  idea  of  passing  the 
winter  in  Pau,  so  that  many  lovely  resi- 
dences were  seekinof  tenants.  For  eiijht 
hundred  dollars  a  year  I  hired  a  beautiful 
villa,  looking  on  the  Pyrenees,  directly  op- 
posite the  Pic  du  Midi  d'Ossau,  with  lovely 

6s 


66  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


grounds  filled  with  camelia  bushes,  and  I 
then  felt  that  I  had  all  a  man  could  de- 
sire,— a  perfect  home  made  to  one's  hand, 
a  climate  where  the  wind  never  blows  hard 
enough,  even  in  winter,  to  stir  a  leaf  on 
the  trees,  the  best  cooks  in  the  world,  and 
where  people  appeared  to  live  but  to  eat 
well  and  sleep.  A  country  of  beautiful 
women  ;  the  peasantry  a  mixture  of  Span- 
ish and  French  blood  ;  the  climate  so  soft 
and  genial  as  to  take  away  all  harshness 
or  roughness  from  their  faces — rich  Titian- 
like women,  with  fine  coloring  and  superb 
fiofures — what  more  could  man  desire  ?  I 
was,  I  may  say,  a  pioneer  American  there. 

A  member  of  a  distinguished  New  York 
family,  who  had  been  our  Secretary  of 
Legation  at  Madrid,  had  preceded  me  ;  he 
had  a  lovely  English  wife,  was  the  master 
of  the  hounds,  and  gave  me  a  cordial  recep- 
tion. I  lived  there  two  winters,  with  a  lux- 
ury I  have  never  since  enjoyed,  and  liter- 
ally for  nothing,  comparing  one's  expenses 
there  to  living  in  New  York.    The  desire 


WINTER  AT  PAU. 


67 


to  entertain  took  possession  of  me  and 
I  gratified  it  ;  such  dinners  and  such 
wines !  I  ran  down  to  Bordeaux,  made 
friends  with  all  the  wine  fraternity  there, 
tasted  and  criticised,  and  wormed  myself 
into  the  good  graces  of  the  owners  of  those 
enormous  Bordeaux  caves,  learned  there 
for  the  first  time  what  claret  was,  and  how 
impossible  it  was  to  drink  out  of  Bordeaux, 
what  a  Bordeaux  connoisseur  would  call  a 
perfect  wine.  There  I  learned  how  to  give 
dinners  ;  to  esteem  and  value  the  Cog  de 
Bruylre  of  the  Pyrenees  and  the  Pie  de 
Mars  (squab  Magpie). 

Pau  was  filled  with  sick  English  people. 
I  was  one  of  the  few  sound  men  physically 
in  the  place.  I  dashed  into  society  with  a 
vim.  My  Louisiana  friend,  the  Judge,  fol- 
lowed me  there,  and  I  had  my  hands  full  in 
establishing  him  socially.  Shrewd,  and  im- 
mensely clever,  he  came  to  me  one  day  and 
said,  "  My  friend,  I  am  going  to  make  a  name 
for  myself  in  this  place  ;  wait  and  \o\\  will 
see."    Some  little  distance  from  Pau,  there 


68  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


was  a  large  tract  of  worthless  land,  utterly 
valueless,  called  Lcs  Landcs.  Shepherds  on 
stilts  tended  a  few  sheep  on  it.  The  judge 
at  once  had  an  interview  with  the  Prefet  of 
the  Basses  Pyrenees  (an  officer  similar  to 
the  governor  of  one  of  our  States),  and 
assured  him  of  the  feasibility  of  reclaiming 
all  this  land  and  makinsf  fine  cotton  fields 
of  it.  This  scheme,  wonderful  to  relate, 
was  seized  upon  with  avidity  by  the  Prefet, 
and  my  friend,  the  Judge,  was  asked  to 
submit  his  views.  This  was  all  he  wanted. 
Of  course  he  never  perfected  his  plans  for 
such  work.  The  Prefet,  however,  was  at 
once  his  friend  and  admirer,  and  he  was 
made  the  distino-uished  and  souMit-after 
stranger  of  that  winter.  He  then  came  to 
me  to  get  up  a  dinner  for  him,  to  be  given 
to  his  newly  acquired  friend,  which  he 
charged  me  to  make  the  most  brilliant  and 
superb  dinner  ever  given  in  that  place.  I 
well  remember  his  order  to  the  florist  ; 
"  Furnish  me  for  my  table  such  a  display 
of  flowers  as  you  would  provide  for  your 


WINTER  AT  PAU. 


69 


Emperor  ;  spare  no  expense."  I  tele- 
graphed to  Paris  and  exhausted  all  my 
resources  to  give  him  what  he  wished. 
When  his  guests  were  all  assembled  in  his 
salon,  my  friend  could  not  remember  who 
was  to  take  in  who  to  dinner;  so  with  great 
coolness  he  walked  over  to  me,  and  to  dis- 
tract the  attention  of  his  assembled  guests, 
said,  in  a  loud  voice,  "  Your  horses,  I  am 
told,  have  run  away,  upset  your  carriage, 
and  killed  the  coachman."  Instantly  the 
French  people  sprang  up,  exclaiming, 
"  What !  what  is  it  !  is  it  possible  !"  while 
the  Judge,  in  a  low  voice,  whispered,  "  Tell 
me  quick  who  is  to  take  in  Madame  }.,  and 
who  goes  in  with  Count  R.?"  I  told  him, 
when  he  quietly  said,  "All  made  up,  my 
boy,  let  them  believe  it."  The  dinner  was 
a  success,  such  a  success  that  I  resolved  to 
give  a  ball  myself  on  the  arrival  from  Paris 
of  one  of  our  New  York  merchant  princes, 
to  whom  I  was  much  indebted. 

The  French  papers  gave  a  glowing 
account   of    this    l)all,   and    I    was  fairly 


7° 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


launched  into  the  French  society  of  the 
Basses  Pyrenees.  It  is  hard  to  convince 
an  old  business  man,  Avho  has  had  laree 
experience  and  amassed  a  fortune,  that  any 
one  can  do  anythincj  in  his  line  better  than 
himself.  Therefore,  when  I  gave  my  mer- 
chant prince  exquisite  Bordeaux  wines  that 
I  knew  Avere  incomparable,  and  extolled 
them,  he  quietly  replied  : 

"Why,  my  young  friend,  these  Avines  are 
all  from  the  house  of  Barton  &  Guestier. 
Now,  )-ou  must  know,  that  the  house  of 
Johnson  can  alone  furnish  what  I  class  as 
the  best  clarets.  I  have  for  forty  years 
been  in  correspondence  with  that  house, 
and  will  guarantee  to  produce  here  in  Pau, 
from  them,  clarets  and  sauternes  better 
than  any  A'our  house  of  Barton  &  Guestier 
can  send  you."  I  took  him  up  at  once,  and 
the  wager  was  a  fine  dinner  of  twenty 
covers.  All  I  had  to  do  was  to  write  the 
above  statement  to  Mr.  Guestier,  who  at 
once  sent  me  his  own  butler  to  serve  the 
wines,  and  sent  with  him  a  "  Haut  Brion  " 


IV/.VTER  AT  PAU. 


71 


and  a  Chateau  Latour  of   1848.     As  he 

termed  it,  Diisc  en  botUeille  to7it  a  fait  spc- 
cicxlc  hors  dc  ligne,  whose  smoothness,  bou- 
quet, and  flavor  surpassed  anything  I  had 
ever  dreamt  of  tasting.  My  merchant 
prince  with  his  Johnson  wines  was  beaten 
out  of  si^ht,  and  so  mortified  was  he  that 
the  day  after  the  dinner  he  sent  me  as  a 
present  all  the  wines  Johnson  had  sent 
him. 

The  hunt  was  then  really  the  feature  of 
Pau  life,  for  those  who  could  not  follow  in 
the  saddle  would,  after  attending  the  meet, 
take  to  the  roads  and  see  the  best  of  the 
run.  General  Bosquet,  returning  then  to 
Pau,  his  native  city,  was  feted  by  both 
French  and  English.  He  had  so  distin- 
guished himself  in  the  Crimean  War  that 
all  recjarded  him  as  a  g^reat  hero.  The 
English  particularly  wanted  to  express 
their  admiration  of  him,  so  they  asked  him 
to  appear  with  his  friends  at  the  next  Meet, 
and  follow  in  the  hunt,  promising  him  rare 
sport  and  a  good  run  after  a  bagged  fox. 


72  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOU.YD  I7\ 


To  do  him  honor,  the  French,  to  a  man, 
ordered  new  hunting  suits,  all  of  them 
turned  out  in  "pink,"  and  being  in  force 
made  indeed  a  great  show. 

My  Irish  doctor  was  by  my  side,  in  great 
eood  humor,  and  a  wicked  twinkle  in  his 
eye.    Turning  to  me  he  said  : 

"You  will  soon  see  some  fun;  not  one 
of  these  Frenchmen  can  take  that  jump  ;  it 
is  a  rasper.  Not  a  man  of  them  will  clear 
that  bank  and  ditch." 

I  smiled  at  this,  and  felt  that  to  the  end 
of  time  it  would  always  be  English  against 
French,  It  was  cruel  ;  but  men  should 
not  pretend  to  ride  after  hounds  when  they 
cannot  take  the  jumps. 

"  Look  at  those  chaps,"  he  said,  "  in 
spotless  pink;  not  a  man  among  them 
who  can  jump  a  horse  to  any  purpose." 

They  were  the  nobility  of  the  Basses 
Pyrenees,  a  splendid,  gallant  set  of  fellows ; 
all  prepared  "to  do  or  die."  The  master 
of  the  hounds  raised  his  hat,  the  fox  was 
turned  out  of  the  bag ;  he  was  given  ten 


IVIXTER  AT  PAU. 


73 


minutes'  law;  then  the  huntsman  with  his 
pack  dashed  away,  clearing  both  bank  and 
ditch.  It  was  the  severest  jump  the)'  could 
hnd  in  any  part  of  that  countr)',  pur[)osely 
chosen  for  that  reason.  My  doctor's  little 
Irish  boy,  a  lad  of  sixteen  years,  went  at 
it,  and  cleared  it  at  a  bound.  I  saw  the 
master  of  the  hunt  (an  American,  a  splen- 
did looking  fellow,  superbly  mounted,  and 
a  beautiful  rider),  with  General  Bosquet  at 
his  side,  turn  to  the  General  (who  was  rid- 
ing one  of  his  horses),  and  shout : 

"General,  dash  the  spurs  into  her;  lift 
her  head  a  bit,  and  follow  me." 

The  General  did  not  hesitate  ;  he  plunged 
the  spurs  into  the  beast,  dashed  ahead,  and 
cleared  bank  and  ditch.  All  his  friends 
followed  him.  Forward  they  went,  but 
only  for  a  few  rods,  when  every  horse,  as  if 
shot,  came  to  a  full  stop,  planted  his  fore- 
feet in  front  of  him,  and  neither  whip  nor 
spur  could  budge  him.  None  would  take 
the  jump  ;  every  Frenchman's  face  became 
ashey  pale,  and  I  really  felt  sorry  for  them. 


74  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


Not  a  Frenchman,  with  the  exception  of 
the  General,  took  that  jump.  After  this, 
the  mere  mention  of  fox  hunting  would  set 
the  Frenchmen  wild.  It  was  cruel,  but  it 
was  sport. 

Moral :  Men  should  not  attempt  to  do 
what  is  not  in  them. 

Passing  two  winters  at  Pau  and  the 
summers  at  Baden-Baden,  keeping  four 
horses  at  the  former  place,  following  the 
hounds  at  least  once  a  week,  giving  all 
through  the  winter  from  one  to  two  dinners 
a  week,  with  an  English  housekeeper,  and 
living  as  well  as  I  could  possibly  live,  with 
the  cost  of  my  ball  included,  I  did  not 
spend  half  the  amount  in  living  that  I  am 
compelled  to  in  New  York,  The  ball  cost 
me  but  eisrht  hundred  dollars. 


* 


HOME  AGAIN. 


75 


CHAPTER  VII. 


A/v  Return  to  New  York  —  Dinner  to  a  Well-known 
Millionaire —  Visit  of  Lord  Frederick  Cavendish, 
Hon.  E.  Ashley,  and  G.  W.  des  Voeux  to  the  United 
States  —  /  Entertain  Them  at  My  Southern  Home — 
My  Father  s  Old  Friends  Resent  my  Manner  of 
Entertaining  —  Her  Majesty's  Consul  disgruntled  — 
Cedar  Wash-tubs  and  Hot  Sheets  for  viy  English 
Guests — Shooting  Snipe  07>er  the  Rice  Lands — Scour- 
ing the  Country  for  Pretty  Girls. 

Called  home  by  the  stupidity  of  an 
agent,  who  was  unable  to  treat  with  my 
old  friend,  Commodore  \^anderbilt,  for  an 
extension  of  his  lease  of  our  dock  property, 
most  unwillingly  we  left  our  dear  old  Pau, 
with  all  its  charming  associations,  and  re- 
turned to  New  York. 

I  have  always  had  a  great  fondness  for 
men  older  than  myself.  Always  preferring 
to  associate  with  my  superiors  than  my 
inferiors  in  intellect,  and  hence  when 
brought  in  contact  with  one  of  America's 

77 


78  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


noblest  and  most  cultivated  men  (withal, 
the  then  richest  man  in  the  United  States, 
if  not  in  the  world),  by  his  son-in-law, 
with  whom  I  had  formed  a  close  intimacy 
abroad,  I  sought  his  society,  and  he,  in  turn, 
appeared  at  least  to  enjoy  mine.  Din- 
ing with  him  constantly,  I  suggested  that 
he  should  dine  with  me ;  to  which  he 
readily  assented.  So  I  went  to  Cranston, 
my  landlord  of  the  New  York  Hotel,  and 
put  him  to  his  trumps  to  give  me  a  suitable 
dinner.  His  hotel  was  then  crowded,  and 
I  had  actually  to  take  down  a  bedstead  and 
improvise  a  dining-room.  Cranston  was 
one  of  those  hotel-keepers  who  worked  as 
much  for  glory  as  for  money.  He  gave  us 
simply  a  perfect  dinner,  and  my  dear  old 
friend  and  his  wife  enjoyed  it.  I  remem- 
ber his  saying  to  me,  "  My  young  friend,  if 
you  go  on  giving  such  dinners  as  these  you 
need  have  no  fear  of  planting  yourself  in 
this  city."  I  here  give  the  menu  of  this 
dinner : 


HOME  AGAIX. 


79 


CARTE  jDU  diner. 


Les  Huitres,  salees. 


Le  Potage  de  Consomme  de  \'oIaille,  i  la  Royale. 


Le  Basse  rayee,  grillee,  Sauce  Remoulade. 


Les  Pommesde  Terra,  d  la  Lyonnaise. 


La  Mayonnaise  de  Homard,  decoree  a  la  gelee. 
Le  Filet  de  Bceuf,  pique.  I'oti,  aux  champignons. 


Les  Cailles,  truffees,  a  la  Financiere. 
Les  Cotelettes  d'Agneau,  a  la  Soubise. 

Les  Tomates,  h.  I'Americaine. 

Les  Petits  Pois,  4  la  Fran^aise. 


Canvas-back  Ducks,  roasted. 
Le  Celeri,  au  jus. 


Les  Huitres,  griUees,  a  la  Ste.  Augustine. 


Le  Pouding  de  Cabinet. 
La  Gelee,  au  rhum. 
Les  Meringues,  a  la  Chantiily. 


Les  Glaces  de  Creme,  a  la  Portugaise. 
Les  Ouatre  IMendiants. 
Les  Fruits. 
Le  Cafe,  etc. 

L' Hotel  New  York, 

Mercredi,  le  5  Janvier,  1859. 


8o  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

Just  at  this  time  three  charming  men 
visited  New  York  and  were  feted  by  my 
little  circle  of  friends.  They  were  Lord 
Frederick  Cavendish,  Hon.  Evelyn  Ashley, 
and  G.  W.  des  Voeux,  now  Governor  of 
Hong  Kong  ;  three  of  the  brightest  spirits 
I  had  ever  met,  and  without  the  slightest 
pretension  ;  in  fact,  just  what  the  real  Eng- 
lish gentleman  always  is, — the  first  gentle- 
man in  the  world.  Fearing  a  cold  winter, 
and  a  friend  who  was  going  off  on  a  foreign 
mission  offering  me  his  furnished  house  in 
Savannah,  with  all  his  servants,  etc.,  I  took 
it  on  a  lease  and  proposed  leaving  for  my 
native  city  in  January.  Finding  my  Eng- 
lish friends  also  going  South,  I  invited 
them  to  pass  a  month  with  me  in  my 
Southern  home.  All  my  European  pur- 
chases, my  china,  glass,  and  bric-a-brac,  I 
did  not  even  unbale  in  New  York,  but 
shipped  them  directly  to  Savannah.  Before 
leaving  I  took  the  precaution  to  order  my 
marketing  from  old  Waite  of  Amity  Street 
(the  then  famous  butcher),  to  be  sent  to 


HOME  AGAIN. 


8i 


me  weekly,  and  started  my  new  Southern 
household. 

I  naturally  prided  myself,  on  appearing 
in  my  native  cit}',  in  putting  my  best  foot 
foremost,  and  ent('rtaining  as  well  as  I  knew 
how,  or,  rather,  in  giving  to  my  Southern 
friends,  the  benefit  of  ni)'  European  educa- 
tion in  the  way  of  dinner  giving.  I  found 
this,  at  first,  instead  of  gratifying  my  father's 
friends  rather  piqued  them  ;  they  said — 
"Heydey!  here  is  a  young  fellow  coming 
out  here  to  show  us  how  to  live.  Why,  his 
father  did  not  pretend  to  do  this.  Let  us 
let  him  severely  alone,"  which  for  a  time 
they  did.  I  took  up  the  young  fr}-,  who 
let  their  elders  very  soon  know  that  I  had 
certainh'  learned  something  and  that  Mc's 
dinners  were  bound  to  be  a  feature  in 
Savannah.  Then  the  okl  patriarch  of  the 
place  relented  and  asked  me  to  a  grand 
dinner. 

The  papers  had  announced  the  intended 
visit  to  Savannah  of  the  son  of  the  Duke 
of  Devonshire,  and  the  son  of  the  Earl  of 


t 


82  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

Shaftesbury.  Southern  people  then  wor- 
shipped the  EngHsh  nobility.  They  prided 
themselves  on  retaininor  all  the  old  Encrlish 
habits  and  customs,  and  of  being  descend- 
ants of  the  greatest  nation  of  the  world, — 
excepting  their  own.  The  host  at  the 
dinner  announced  the  coming  of  these 
distincjuished  men,  and  wondered  who  in 
Savannah  would  have  the  honor  of  enter- 
tainincr  them.  The  British  Consul  then 
spoke  up,  he  was  a  great  character  there, 
giving  the  finest  dinners,  and  being  an 
authority  on  wine,  i.e.  Madeira,  "  Her 
Majesty's  Consul  will  have  the  honor."  I 
secretly  smiled,  as  I  knew  they  were  com- 
ing to  me,  and  I  expected  them  the  next 
day.  This  same  good  old  Consul  had  ig- 
nored me,  hearing  I  had  had  the  audacity 
to  give  at  my  table  filet  de  bwuf  aux 
triififcs  ct  champignons.  I  returned  home 
feeling  sure  that  these  young  noblemen 
would  be  but  a  few  hours  under  my  roof 
before  Her  Majesty's  Consul  would  give  me 
the  honor  of  a  visit.     In  fact,  my  guests 


HOME  AG  A IX. 


83 


had  not  been  with  me  an  hour  when  my 
old  friend,  the  Consul,  rushed  up  m\'  front 
steps.  Meeting-  me  at  the  door  he  threw 
his  arms  around  ni)'  neck,  exclaiming,  "  INIy 
dear  boy,  I  was  in  love  with  )our  mother 
thirt)'  years  ago ;  you  are  her  image  ; 
carr\'  me  to  your  noble  guests."  Ever 
after  I  had  the  respect  and  esteem  of  this 
dear  old  man,  who,  for  Savannah,  was  rich 
as  Croesus,  and  before  all  thinos  esteemed 
and  valued  a  good  dinner  and  a  fine  glass 

O  «_> 

of  Madeira.  My  filets  de  boeuf,  and  the 
scions  of  noble  English  houses  placed  me 
in  the  front  social  rank  in  that  little, 
aristocratic  town,  and  brought  forth  from 
one  of  its  oldest  inhabitants  the  exclama- 
tion, "  My  dear  boy,  )-our  aunts,  the  Tel- 
fairs,  could  o^ive  breakfasts,  but  you,  \oy\ 
can  give  dinners." 

Knowing  the  Englishmen's  habits,  I  gave 
to  each  one  of  them,  on  their  arrival,  enor- 
mous cedar  wash-tubs  and  hot  sheets  for 
their  morning  ablutions :  then  a  good 
breakfast,  after  which  we  drove  to  the  river 


84 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


and  had  my  brother-in-law's  ten-oared  boat, 
called  "  The  Rice  Bird,"  all  the  oarsmen  in 
yachting  rig,  myself  at  the  tiller,  and  the 
darkeys,  knowing  they  would  all  have  to- 
bacco, or  money,  pulled  for  dear  life  from 
the  start  to  the  finish,  giving  us  their  plan- 
tation songs.  The  leader  improvised  his 
song,  the  others  only  singing  in  chorus. 
On  these  occasions,  the  colored  people 
would  give  you  in  song  all  the  annoyances 
they  were  subjected  to,  and  the  current 
events  of  plantation  life,  bringing  in  much 
of  and  about  their  "  Massa  "  and  his  family, 
as  follows  :  "  Massa  Ward  marry  our  little 
Miss  Sara,  bring  big  buckra  to  Savannah, 
gwine  to  be  good  times,  my  boys,  pull  boys, 
pull,  over  Jordan  !  "  Reaching  the  planta- 
tions, of  which  there  were  three,  Fairlawn, 
Argyle,  and  Shaftesbury,  well  equipped 
with  admirable  dogs  (for  my  brother-in- 
law  was  a  great  sportsman),  we  would 
shoot  snipe  over  the  rice  lands  until  2  p.m., 
then  lunch  elaborately  in  his  plantation 
house,  and  row  back  in  the  cool  of  the 


HOME  AGAIN. 


85 


afternoon,  dining  at  8  o'clock,  and  having 
as  my  guests  every  pretty  girl  within  a 
hundred  miles  and  more  of  the  city. 
The  flowers,  particularly  the  rose  called 
the  Cloth  of  Gold,  and  the  black  rose, 
I  was  most  prodigal  with.  I  had  given 
a  fee  to  the  clerk  of  the  market  to  scour 
the  country  for  game  and  delicacies,  so  our 
dinners  were  excellent,  and  the  old  South- 
ern habit  of  sitting  over  Madeira  until  the 
small  hours  was  adopted,  and  was,  with 
the  bright  minds  I  had  brought  together, 
most  enjoyable. 


MERRYMAKINCx 

IN  THE  SOUTH. 


87 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

A  Southern  Deer  Park  —  A  Don  Quixote  Steed  —  We 
Hunt  for  Deer  and  Bag  a  Turkey —  Getting  a  Dinner 
by  Force  —  The  French  Chef  attd  the  Colored  Cook 
Contrasted  —  One  is  Inspired,  the  Other  Follows  Trad- 
ition —  Making  a  Sauce  of  Herbs  and  Cream  —  Shoot- 
ing Ducks  Across  the  Moon  —  A  Dawfuskie  Pic-nic. 

Ix  a  small  place,  life  is  monotonous  if 
you  do  not  in  some  way  break  up  this 
monoton)'.  I  bethought  me  of  a  friend 
who  lived  some  distance  from  Savannah, 
who  had  a  deer  park,  was  a  sportsman,  and 
was  also  the  soul  of  hospitality.  His  pride 
lay  in  his  family  and  his  surroundings  ;  so 
I  wrote  to  him  as  follows  :  "  My  dear 
friend,  I  have  no  baronial  mansion  ;  I  am 
a  wanderer  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  while 
you  possess  what  I  most  covet,  an  ances- 
tral home  and  a  great  domain.  Will  you 
then  invite  my  guests  and  me  to  pay  you  a 
visit  and  o-ive  us  a  chance  at  your  deer?" 

O  w 

Back  came  the  invitation  :    "  Come  to  me 

89 


9°  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


at  once  with  your  noble  friends.  I  and  my 
whole  county  will  receive  them  and  do 
them  honor."  The  next  morning,  by  ten, 
we  were  at  the  railway  station.  Before 
leavinof  the  carriaoe  I  saw  a  distingruished 
General,  a  sort  of  Dalgetty  of  a  man,  who 
preferred  to  fight  than  eat,  pacing  up  and 
down  the  railway  platform.  A  ruffled  shirt, 
not  spotless,  a  fierce  air,  an  enormous  false 
diamond  pin,  as  big  as  a  crown  piece,  in 
the  center  of  his  ruffled  shirt  bosom,  with  a 
thin  cTold  cha^n  attached  to  it  and  to  his 
waistcoat,  to  prevent  its  loss.  He  at  once 
approached  me  and  exclaimed,  "  By  Jove  ! 
by  Jove !  Mc,  introduce  me  to  your 
noble  friends."  The  introduction  made, 
he  accompanied  us  to  the  train,  and  in 
turn  presented  us  to  a  large  crowd  assem- 
bled to  see  what  Southern  people  were  so 
proud  of,  "  thoroughbreds,"  as  he  called 
them.  I  repeatedly  heard  him  exclaim, 
"  No  jackass  stock  here,  sir  ;  all  thorough- 
breds !  I  could  tell  'em  in  the  dark."  On 
rolled  the  train,  and  we  soon  reached  our 


MERRYMAKING  IiY  THE  SOUTH.  91 


destination,  and  were  no  sooner  out  of  the 
cars  than  we  were  enveloped  by  a  myriad 
of  sand  flies.  You  could  cut  them  with  a 
knife,  as  it  were.  My  friend,  a  six-footer, 
stepped  up  to  my  guests  and  was  presented. 
He  then  addressed  them  as  follows  :  "  Will 
your  lordships  ride  or  drive  ?  " 

In  the  mean  while,  his  coachman,  a  seedy 
old  darkey,  in  a  white  hat  at  least  ten 
years  old,  fly  specked  to  such  an  extent  that 
its  original  color  was  lost,  in  shabby,  old, 
well-worn  clothes,  seized  me  by  the  coat 
tail,  exclaiming,  "  Massa  Ward,  show  me 
the  '  bi^  buckras.'  "  After  pointing  them 
out,  we  all  pressed  through  the  crowd  to  the 
wagon  and  horses,  two  marsh  tackeys,  with 
their  manes  and  tails  so  full  of  burrs,  and 
so  netted  together,  as  to  form  a  solid  mass  ; 
stirrup  leathers  pieced  with  clothes  lines, 
and  no  evidence  of  either  of  the  animals 
having  ever  seen  or  been  touched  b\-  a  cur- 
ry-comb.  "Don  Quixote,  by  Jove!"  ex- 
claimed the  heir  of  the  Shaftesburys,  and 
vaulted  into  the  saddle,  while  the  repre- 


92 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


sentative  of  the  house  of  Devonshire  and 
myself  took  our  seats  in  the  open  wagon. 
At  this  point,  our  hospitable  host  called  the 
attention  of  his  lordship  to  his  horses  and 
gave  him  their  pedigree.  One  was  sixteen 
hands  high,  had  a  bob  tail,  and  high  action  ; 
the  other  was  a  little  pony  of  fourteen 
hands,  with  an  ambling  gait.  Not  giving 
any  sign  of  moving,  our  host  held  forth  as 
follows  :  "  Your  lordship,  so  well  bred  are 
these  horses  that  if  they  are  not  prop- 
erly caparisoned,  nothing  human  could  stir 
them  ;  they  will  plant  their  feet  in  the  soil 
and  neither  whip  nor  spur  would  budge 
them.  You  see  how  well  my  boy  keeps 
their  harnesses."  By  this  time  I  was  con- 
vulsed. Cavendish,  I  saw,  was  lautrhing; 
inwardly,  but  suppressed  it.  The  straw  in 
one  collar  was  bulsfinsj  out,  one  turret  was 
gone,  and  a  piece  of  rope  lengthened  one 
of  the  traces.  Trul}',  it  had  seen  better  days. 
If  he  calls  that  a  fitting  harness  for  his 
horses,  what  am  I  to  expect  in  the  way  of 
a  house  and  deer  park?   However,  my  fears 


MERRYMAKING  IN  THE  SOUTH. 


93 


were  allayed.  The  house  was  a  charming- 
old  Southern  plantation  house,  and  the 
owner  of  it,  the  embodiment  of  hospitalit)'. 
When  the  cloth  was  removed  at  dinner,  I 
trembled.  For  my  dear  old  father  had 
always  told  me  that  on  his  circuit  (annualh- 
made  b}'  the  Savannah  lawyers)  he  always 
avoided  this  house,  for  in  it  one  could 
never  find  so  much  as  a  i-lass  of  whiske\\ 
What  then  was  my  surprise,  to  have  placed 
before  us  a  superb  bottle  of  sherr}',  since 
world-renowned,  i.e.  in  this  countr)-  ;  and 
a  matchless  Madeira,  which  he  claimed  he 
had  inherited  from  his  father,  to  be  opened 
at  the  marriafye  of  his  sister. 

The  next  morning,  at  the  very  break  of 
day  fixed  for  our  deer  hunt,  the  negro 
boys  commenced  tooting  horns.  As  soon 
as  I  could  see,  I  looked  out  of  my  windows 
and  there  saw  four  old  lean,  lank  dogs, 
lifeless  looking  creatures,  and  four  marsh 
tackeys,  decorated,  front  and  rear,  with  an 
abundance  of  l)urrs.  Off  we  went,  as  sorry 
a  looking  com[)any  as  one's  e)  e  had  ever 


94  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


seen,  with  a  crowd  of  half-naked  children 
following  the  procession.  We  were  out 
eight  hours,  went  through  swamp  after 
swamp,  our  tackeys  up  to  their  fetlocks  in 
mud,  and  sorry  a  deer  did  we  see.  One 
wild  turkey  flew  over  us,  which  my  host's 
colored  huntsman  killed,  the  only  man  in 
the  party  who  could  shoot  at  all. 

Returning  to  Savannah,  we  went  after 
quail.  One  morning,  being  some  fourteen 
miles  from  the  city,  we  felt  famished,  hav- 
ing provided  no  lunch  basket.  I  asked  a 
friend,  who  was  shooting  with  us  and  act- 
ing- as  our  gruide,  if  there  was  a  white  man's 
house  within  a  mile  or  two  where  we  could 
get  a  biscuit.     He  replied,  "  No,  not  one." 

I  pressed  the  matter,  saying,  "  We  must 
have  a  bite  of  something,"  and  urged  him 
to  think  ao;ain.  He  reflected,  and  then 
said,  as  if  to  himself,  "  Oh,  no  use  to  go 
there,  we  will  get  nothing."  I  took  him 
up  at  once. 

"  What  do  you  refer  to,"  I  said.  "  Oh," 
he  replied,  "there  is  a  white  man  who  lives 


MERRYMAKING  IN  THE  SOUTH. 


95 


within  a  mile  of  us,  but  he  is  the  meanest 
creature  that  lives  and  will  have  nothing  to 
o-ive  us." 

o 

"Who  is  he?"  1  exclaimed.  He  gave 
me  his  name.  "  What,"  said  I,  "  Mr. 
Jones,  who  goes  to  Newport  every  sum- 
mer ?  "  "  The  sanie,"  said  he  ;  "  do  you 
know  him  ? " 

"  Know  him  ?  "  I  answered,  "why,  man,  I 
know  no  one  else.  He  has  for  years  asked 
me  to  visit  his  plantation.  He  lives  like 
a  prince.  I  saw  him  at  a  great  fete  at 
Ochre  Point,  Newport,  several  years  ago. 
He  turned  up  his  nose  at  everything  there, 
saying  to  me,  "  Why,  my  dear  fellow,  these 
people  don't  kn<jw  how  to  live.  This  fete 
is  nothing  to  what  I  can  do,  at  my  place. 
Why,  sir,  I  have  so  much  silver  I  dare  not 
keep  it  in  my  house.  The  vaults  of  the 
State  Bank  of  Georgia  are  filled,  with  my 
silver.  This  fete  may  be  well  enough  here, 
but  come  to  me  at  the  South,  come  to  my 
plantation,  and  I  will  show  you  what  a  fete 
is.    I  will  show  you  how  to  live.'"  My 


96  SOCIETY  AS  .1  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


friend  listened  to  all  this  with  astonish- 
ment. 

"  Well,"  said  he,  "  I  have  nothing  to  say. 
That  is  '  big  '  talk.  Go  on  to  your  friend's 
place  and  see  what  you  will  find."  On  we 
moved,  four  as  hungry  men  as  you  could 
well  see.  We  reached  the  plantation,  on 
which  we  found  a  one-story  log  cabin, 
with  a  front  piazza,  one  large  center  room, 
and  two  shed  rooms.  There  was  a  small 
yard,  inclosed  with  pine  palings  to  keep 
out  the  pigs,  who  were  ranging  about  and 
ineffectually  trying  to  gain  an  entrance. 
We  entered  the  house,  and,  seeing  an  old 
colored  man,  my  Southern  friend  opened 
on  the  old  darkey  with  :  "  Where  is  your 
master  ?  " 

"  In  Savannah,  sir." 

"  When  does  he  dine  ?" 

"  At  six  o'clock,  sir." 

"  What  have  you  got  for  his  dinner,  old 
man  ? 

"  Pea  pie." 

"Is  that  all  that  he  has  for  his  dinner  ?  " 


MKKRY MAKING  IX  THE  SOUTH 


97 


"  Yes,  sir." 

"What  is  pea  pie?"  I  asked, 

"  Cow  peas  and  bacon,"  was  the  answer. 

With  this,  m}'  Southern  friend  stepped 
to  the  back  door  of  the  house,  asked  the 
old  man  to  point  liini  out  a  fat  turkey. 
The  old  darkey  did  this,  saj'ing, 

"  There's  one,  sir,  but,  Lord  help  me, 
Massa,  don't  kill  him." 

The  protest  came  too  late.  Up  to  the 
shoulder  went  the  gun,  and  down  fell  the 
turkey.  Now,  turning  to  the  old  darkey, 
he  said  : 

"  Old  man,  pick  that  turkey  and  roast 
him,  and  tell  your  Massa  four  big  buckra 
men  are  coming  to  dine  with  him  to-day, 
at  six  o'clock."  We  got  some  corn-bread 
from  the  kitchen  and  went  off  shooting.  A 
few  minutes  before  six,  we  returned,  and 
heard  indeed  a  racket  in  that  old  cabin. 
The  "  Massa"  was  there,  as  we  saw  by  the 
buggy,  standing  in  the  front  yard  ;  the 
horse  browsing  a  few  feet  off,  the  harness 
in  the  buggy,  and  the  master  shouting  out, 


♦ 


98  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


"  You  tell  me  white  men  came  here,  kill 
my  turkey,  tell  you  to  cook  him,  and  you 
don't  know  them  ?  Who  in  the  devil  can 
they  be  ?"  No  sooner  had  he  got  this  out, 
when  I  appeared  on  the  scene.  Up  went 
his  arms  in  astonishment, 

"Why,  Mc,  is  this  you?  Glad  to  see 
you  and  your  friends." 

Down  we  sat  at  his  table,  and  had  a 
dinner  of  small  rice,  pea  pie,  and  roast 
turkey,  washed  down  by  a  bottle  of  fine  old 
Madeira,  which  he  called  "  the  blood  of  his 
ancestors."  I  looked  in  vain  for  a  side- 
board to  put  silver  on,  or  any  evidence  of 
any  past  f6te  having  been  given  on  the 
premises.  Our  host  was  a  thoroughly  local 
man  ;  one  of  those  men  who,  when  in  Paris, 
would  say,  "  I'm  going  to  town,"  when  he 
proposed  returning  to  Savannah,  which,  at 
that  time,  was  to  him  the  metropolis  of 
America.  This  gentleman  then,  like  others 
in  the  South,  cultivated  the  belief  that  they 
alone  lived  well,  and  that  there  was  no 
such  thing  as  good  society  in  New  York  or 


MERRYMAKING  IX  THE  SOUTH. 


99 


Other  Northern  cities  ;  that  New  Yorkers 
and  Northern  people  were  simply  a  lot  of 
tradespeople,  having  no  antecedents,  spring- 
ing up  like  the  mushroom,  who  did  not 
know  how  to  live,  and  who,  when  they  gave 
dinners  to  their  friends,  ordered  them  from 
a  neighboring  restaurant. 

At  a  large  dinner  in  Savannah,  given  to 
an  ex-Mayor  of  New  York,  one  of  the  best 
dinner-givers  in  that  city  made  the  fore- 
going statement,  and  the  ex-Mayor  actually 
called  upon  me  to  substantiate  it,  declaring 
it  had  always  been  his  practice  thus  to  sup- 
ply his  table,  when  he  invited  a  dozen  or 
more  people  to  dinner.  So  far  from  this 
being  the  case,  I  then  and  there  assured 
my  Southern  friends  that  no  people  in  the 
world  lived  better  than  New  Yorkers,  so 
far  as  creature  comforts  were  concerned. 
I  have  tested  the  capacity  of  the  Southern 
cook  alongside  of  the  French  chef;  I  had 
them  together,  cooking  what  we  call  a 
"  Saratoga  Lake  Dinner "  at  Newport,  a 
dinner  for  sixty  people ;     serving  alone 


lOO         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  EOL'XD  IT. 

Spanish  mackerel,  Saratoga  potatoes,  soft 
shell  crabs,  woodcock,  chicken  partridges, 
and  lettuce  salad.  Both  were  great  artists 
in  their  way,  but  the  c/ief  came  off  very 
much  the  victor.  I  doubted  then,  and  I 
doubt  now,  if  the  dinners  in  London  are 
better  than  our  New  York  dinners,  given  by 
one  of  the  innumerable  s^ood  dinner-crivers. 
Our  material  is  better  in  New  York,  and 
our  cooks  are  equally  as  good  as  those  in 
England.  The  sauces  of  the  French 
cuisine  are  its  feature,  while  there  is  not  a 
single  sauce  in  African  or  Southern  cook- 
incr.  The  French  ijet  the  essence  and 
flavor  out  of  fowl,  and  discard  the  huge 
joints.  Take  for  instance,  soup  ;  give  a 
colored  cook  a  shin  of  beef  and  a  bunch  of 
carrots  and  turnips,  and  of  this  he  makes 
a  soup.  A  Frenchman,  to  give  you  a  coii- 
somm^  royale,  requires  a  knuckle  of  veal,  a 
shin  of  beef,  two  fat  fowls,  and  every  vege- 
table known  to  man.  The  materials  are 
more  than  double  the  expense,  but  then 
you  have  a  delicacy  of  flavor,  and  a  sifting 


MERRYMAA'IXG  IN  THE  SOUTH.  loi 


out  of  everything-  tliat  is  coarse  and  gross, 
llie  chef  is  an  educated,  cultivated  artist. 
The  colored  cook,  such  as  nature  made  him, 
possessing  withal  a  wonderful  natural  taste, 
and  the  art  of  making  things  savory,  i.e. 
taste  good.  His  cookery  book  is  tradition. 
French  chefs  have  their  inspirations,  are 
•in  every  way  almost  as  much  inspired  as 
writers.  To  illustrate  this  :  when  Henry 
IV.  was  fighting  in  the  Pyrenees,  he  told 
his  French  cook  to  giv^e  him  a  new  sauce. 
The  reply  was,  "Where  are  the  materials 
for  it,  your  Majesty  ?  I  have  nothing  here 
but  herbs  and  cream."  "  Then  make  a 
sauce  from  them,"  was  the  King's  answer. 
The  chef  did  this,  and  produced  one  of  the 
best  sauces  in  the  French  cuisine,  known  as 
sauce  Bearnaise. 

Having  exhausted  quail  and  snipe  shoot- 
ing and  made  a  failure  at  deer  hunting,  we 
went  on  the  banks  of  the  rice  jjlantations 
at  night,  to  shoot  wild  ducks,  as  they 
crossed  the  moon.  Whilst  whiling  away 
the  time,  waiting  for  ducks,  we  talked  over 


I02         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


England  and  America,  Lord  Frederick 
Cavendish  assured  me  that  if  I  were  then 
hving-  in  England,  I  could  not  there  lead 
a  pleasanter  life  than  I  was  then  leading. 
He  liked  everything  at  the  South,  the  hos- 
pitality of  the  people,  and  their  simple 
contentment  and  satisfaction  with  their  sur- 
roundings. On  these  three  places  there 
were  then  six  hundred  slaves  ;  the  net  in- 
come of  these  estates  was  $40,000  a  year. 
They  would  have  easily  brought  half  a 
million.  When  the  Civil  War  terminated, 
my  brother-in-law  was  offered  $100,000  for 
them ;  by  the  war  he  had  lost  all  his  slaves. 
To-day  the  estates  would  scarcely  bring 
$30,000,  showing  the  change  in  values 
caused  by  the  Civil  War. 

I  was  then  able  to  show  my  guests  a 
Savannah  picnic,  which  is  an  institution 
peculiar  to  the  place.  Leaving  the  city  in 
a  river  steamer  our  party  consisting  of  one 
hundred  people,  after  a  little  over  an  hour's 
sail  we  reached  an  island  in  the  Atlantic 
Ocean,  known  as  Dawfuskie,  a  beautiful 


ArF.A'/n'MAk'/XG  IX  THE  SOUTH.  103 


spot  on  which  stood  a  charming  residence, 
with  five  acres  of  roses  surrounding  the 
house.  The  heads  of  families  carricMl,  each 
of  them,  huge  baskets  containing  their  din- 
ner, and  a  full  table  service,  wine,  etc.,  for 
say,  ten  or  a  dozen  people.  On  our  arrival, 
all  formed  into  groups  under  the  trees,  a 
cloth  was  laid  on  the  ground,  dishes,  plates 
and  glasses  arranged  on  it,  and  the  cham- 
pagne at  once  frappcd  in  small  hand  pails. 
There  was  then  a  dance  in  the  open  air, 
on  a  platform,  and  in  the  afternoon,  with 
cushions  as  seats  for  the  ladies,  these  im- 
provised dinner-tables  were  filled.  Each 
had  its  separate  hostess  ;  all  was  harmony 
and  pleasure.  As  night  approached,  the 
people  re-embarked  on  the  steamer  and 
returned  home  by  moonlight. 


LIFE  AT  NEWPORT. 


105 


I 


CHAPTER  IX. 


/  Leave  the  South  —  A  Typical  British  Naval  Officer  — 
An  Officer  of  the  Household  Troops  —  Early  Xetuport 
Life — A  Country  Dinner —  The  Way  I  got  up  Pic- 
nics —  Farmers  Throw  their  Houses  Open  to  Us  —  A 
Bride  Receives  us  in  her  Bridal  Array — My  New- 
port Farm  —  My  Southdowns  and  my  Turkeys  — 
What  an  "English  Lady  said  of  our  Little  Island — 
Newport  a  place  to  lake  Social  Root  in. 

INlv  English  friends  bidding  me  farewell, 
soon  after,  I  gave  up  my  Savannah  house 
and  made  Newport  my  permanent  home, 
for  I  spent  nine  months  of  the  year  there, 
with  a  winter  trip  to  the  W  est  Indies.  I 
must  not  omit  to  mention  here  that  while 
passing  the  winter  at  Nassau,  N.  P.,  I  made 
the  acquaintance  of  a  most  polished,  ele- 
gant, and  courtly  man,  a  captain  in  the 
British  Navy,  who  entertained  me  as  one 
can  only  be  entertained  on  a  British  man- 
of-war,  giving  me  Devonshire  cream  and 
every  luxur\',  and  all  as  well  served  as 

though  it  had  been  ashore.    Meeting  hini 

107 


lo8  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


repeatedly  at  dinner  at  the  house  of  the 
Governor  of  the  Bahamas,  he  siicfcjested 
that  as  it  was  a  most  difficult  thincj  to 
board  the  steamship  that  was  to  take  us  to 
New  York,  she  never  crossing-  the  bar,  he 
would  himself,  in  his  own  oio-  take  us  out 
to  that  vessel  when  we  left  the  island. 

I  had  forgotten  this  kind  promise,  but 
on  the  day  fixed  for  our  departure  (it  then 
blowing  a  gale,  one  of  those  terrible 
"northers"  of  the  West  Indies),  I  received 
a  note  from  this  gallant  captain,  telling 
me  that  his  boat's  crew  had  already  crossed 
the  bar,  boarded  our  steamer,  and  learnt 
the  precise  spot  where  she  would  lie  in 
the  afternoon  when  she  would  take  on 
her  passengers.  In  vain  did  I  protest 
ao^ainst  his  undertakinor  this  dancrerous 
piece  of  work.  Do  it  he  would  ;  and  tak- 
ing the  tiller  himself,  we  w^ere  safely  rowed 
in  his  gig,  twelve  miles,  and  boarded  the 
vessel. 

I  afterwards  learned  that  while  he  was 
going  from  his  vessel  in  full  evening  dress. 


LIFE  AT  NEW  PORT. 


with  his  white  gloves  carefully  buttoned 
(for  he  was  called  the  dandy  of  the  English 
Navy),  he  sprang  overboard  and  saved  one 
of  his  men  from  drowning. 

On  our  reaching  the  deck  of  the  steamer, 
I  was  struck  with  the  obsequiousness  of 
the  steamer's  captain  to  the  naval  officer, 
(she  w^as,  by  the  wa}',  a  Cunarder).  ]\Iy 
friend,  the  captain,  then  introduced  me  to 
one  of  his  countrymen,  saying  to  me,  sim- 
ply, "  You  will  find  him  a  nice  fellow." 
He  turned  out  to  be  one  of  the  most  dis- 
tinguished young  men  in  England,  an 
officer  of  the  Household  Troops,  a  most 
fascinating  man,  who  had  been  to  Jamaica 
to  look  after  his  father's  estates  there.  I 
introduced  him  to  my  friends  in  New  York, 
and  in  return  for  the  hospitality  extended 
to  him  then,  heard  later  that  he,  on  receiv- 
ing letters  of  introduction  from  me,  had  paid 
marked  attention  to  the  bearers  of  the 
letters.  I  relate  this  as  an  evidence  that 
Englishmen  do  reciprocate  attentions  re- 
ceived in  this  country. 


no         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


Newport  was  now  at  its  best.  The 
most  charming  people  of  the  country  had 
formed  a  select  little  community  there  ;  the 
society  was  small,  and  all  were  included  in 
the  craieties  and  festivities.     Those  were 

<_> 

the  days  that  made  Newport  what  it  was 
then  and  is  now,  the  most  enjoyable  and 
luxurious  little  island  in  America.  The 
farmers  of  the  island  even  seemed  to  catch 
the  infection,  and  they  were  as  much  inter- 
ested in  the  success  of  our  picnics  and 
country  dinners,  as  we  were  ourselves. 
They  threw  open  their  houses  to  us,  and 
never  heeded  the  invasion,  on  a  bright  sun- 
shiny day,  of  a  party  of  fifty  people,  who 
took  possession  of  their  dining-room,  in 
fact  of  their  whole  house,  and  frolicked 
in  it  to  their  heart's  content.  To  be  sure, 
I  had  often  to  pacify  a  farmer  when  a 
liveried  groom  robbed  his  hen  roost,  but 
as  he  knew  that  this  fashionable  horde 
paid  their  way,  he  was  easily  soothed.  I 
always  then  remarked  that  in  Newport,  at 
that  time,  you  could  have  driven  a  four-in- 


LIFE  AT  NEWPORT. 


I  1 1 


hand  of  camels  or  o^iraffes,  and  the  resi- 
dents  of  the  island  would  have  smiled  and 
found  it  quite  the  thin<;-.  The  charm  of 
the  phice  then  was  the  simple  way  of 
entertaining";  there  were  no  large  balls; 
all  the  dancing  and  dining  was  done  by 
daylight,  and  in  the  countr)-.  I  did  not 
hesitate  to  ask  the  crane  dc  la  crcuic 

of  New  York  society  to  lunch  and  dine  at 
my  farm,  or  to  a  fishing  party  on  the  rocks. 
My  little  farm  dinners  gained  such  a  repu- 
tation that  my  friends  would  say  to  me: 
"  Now,  remember,  leave  me  out  of  your 
ceremonious  dinners  as  you  choose,  but 
alwaj's  include  me  in  those  given  at  your 
farm,  or  I'll  never  forgive  )-ou."  Hut  to 
convey  any  idea  of  our  country  parties, 
one  must  in  detail  give  the  method  of 
getting  them  up  :  Riding  on  the  Avenue 
on  a  lovely  summer's  day,  I  would  be 
stopped  by  a  beautiful  woman,  in  gorgeous 
array,  looking  so  fascinating  that  if  she 
were  to  ask  you  to  attempt  the  impossible, 
you  would  at  least  make  the  effort.  She 


112  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


would  open  on  me  as  follows  :  "  My  dear 
friend,  we  are  all  dying  for  a  picnic.  Can't 
you  get  one  up  for  us?" 

"  Why,  my  dear  lady,"  I  would  answer, 
"you  have  dinners  every  day,  and  charm- 
ing dinners  too  ;  what  more  do  you  want  ?" 

"Oh,  they're  not  picnics.  Any  one  can 
give  dinners,"  she  would  reply;  "what  we 
want  is  one  of  your  picnics.  Now,  my 
dear  friend,  do  get  one  up." 

This  was  enough  to  fire  me,  and  set  me 
going.    So  I  reply  : 

"  I  will  do  your  bidding.  Fix  on  the 
day  at  once,  and  tell  me  what  is  the  best 
dish  your  cook  makes." 

Out  comes  my  memorandum  book,  and 
I  write  :  "  Monday,  i  p.m.,  meet  at  Nar- 
ragansett  Avenue,  bring  Jilct  de  bceiif 
piqud,''  and  with  a  bow  am  off  in  my 
little  wagon,  and  dash  on,  to  waylay 
the  next  cottager,  stop  every  carriage 
known  to  contain  friends,  and  ask  them, 
one  and  all,  to  join  our  country  party, 
and    assign   to   each    of   them   the  pro- 


LIFE  AT  NEWPORT. 


113 


riding-  of  a  certain  dish  and  a  bottle  of 
champagne.  Meeting  young  men,  I  charge 
them  to  take  a  bottle  of  champagne,  and  a 
pound  of  grapes,  or  order  from  the  con- 
fectioner's a  quart  of  ice  cream  to  be  sent 
to  me.  My  pony  is  put  on  its  mettle  ; 
I  keep  going  the  entire  day  getting  re- 
cruits ;  I  engage  my  music  and  servants, 
and  a  carpenter  to  put  down  a  dancing 
platform,  and  the  florist  to  adorn  it,  and 
that  evening  I  go  over  in  detail  the  Avhole 
afYair,  map  it  out  as  a  general  would  a 
battle,  omitting  nothing,  not  even  a  salt 
spoon  ;  see  to  it  that  I  have  men  on  the 
road  to  direct  my  party  to  the  farm,  and 
bid  the  farmer  put  himself  and  family,  and 
the  whole  farm,  in  holiday  attire. 

On  one  occasion,  as  my  farmer  had  just 
taken  unto  himself  a  bride,  a  )oung  and 
pretty  woman,  I  found  that  at  mid-day,  to 
receive  my  guests,  she  had  dressed  herself 
in  bridal  array ;  she  was  dc^collctc,  and 
seemed  quite  prepared  to  sing  the  old 
ballad  of  "Coming  thro' the  rye";  but  as 


114         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


her  husband  was  a  stalwart  young  fellow, 
and  extremely  jealous,  I  advised  the  young 
men  in  the  party  to  confine  their  attentions 
to  their  own  little  circle  and  let  Priscilla, 
the  Puritan,  alone. 

When  I  first  began  giving  picnics  at  my 
farm,  I  literally  had  no  stock  of  my  own. 
I  felt  tliat  it  would  never  do  to  have  a 
gathering  of  the  brightest  and  cleverest 
people  in  the  country  at  my  place  with  the 
pastures  empty,  neither  a  cow  nor  a  sheep  ; 
so  my  Yankee  wit  came  to  my  assistance. 
1  at  once  hired  an  entire  fiock  of  South- 
down sheep,  and  two  yoke  of  cattle,  and 
several  cows  from  the  neifihborinof  farm,  for 
iialf  a  day,  to  be  turned  into  my  pasture 
lots,  to  give  the  place  an  animated  look.  I 
well  remember  some  of  my  knowing  guests, 
beinof  amateur  farmers,  exclaiminsf  : 

"Well,  it  is  astonishing!  Mc  has  but 
fifty  acres,  and  here  he  is,  keeping  a 
splendid  flock  of  Southdowns,  two  yoke  of 
cattle,  to  say  nothing  of  his  cows:" 

I  would  smile  and  say  : 


LIFE  AT  NEWPORT. 


"5 


"  My  friend  I  am  not  a  fancy  farmer,  like 
yourself;  I  farm  for  profit." 

At  that  time,  I  was  out  of  pocket  from 
three  to  four  thousand  dollars  a  year  by  my 
farm,  but  must  here  add,  for  my  justifica- 
tion, that  finding  amateur  farming  an 
expensive  luxury,  I  looked  the  matter 
squarely  in  the  face,  watched  carefully  the 
Yankee  farmers  around  me,  and  satisfied 
myself  that  they  knew  more  about  the 
business  than  I  did,  and  at  once  followed 
in  their  footsteps,  placed  my  farm  on 
shares,  paying  nothing  out  for  labor,  my- 
self paying  the  running  expenses,  and 
dividing  the  profits  with  my  farmer. 
Instead  of  losincj  three  or  four  thous- 
and  dollars  a  year  by  my  farm,  it  then 
paid  me.  and  continues  to  pay  me  seven  to 
eight  hundred  dollars  a  year  clear  of  all 
expenses.  We  sell  off  of  fifty  acres  of 
land,  having  seventeen  additional  acres  of 
pasturage,  over  three  thousand  dollars  of 
produce  each  year.  I  sell  fift}-  Southdown 
lambs  during  the  months  of  April  and  May, 


Il6  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


at  the  rate  of  eight  to  ten  dollars  each,  to 
obtain  which  orders  are  sent  to  me  in  ad- 
vance, and  my  winter  turkeys  have  become 
as  famous  as  my  Southdown  lambs.  The 
farm  is  now  a  profit  instead  of  a  loss.  I 
bought  this  place  in  1853  ;  if  I  had 
bought  the  same  amount  of  land  south  of 
Newport,  instead  of  north  of  the  town,  it 
would  have  been  worth  a  fortune  to-day. 

To  return  to  our  picnic^  The  anxiety  as 
to  what  the  weather  would  be,  was  alwa\s 
my  first  anno)'ance,  for  of  course  these 
country  parties  hinge  on  the  weather. 
After  making  all  your  preparations,  every- 
thing ready  for  the  start,  then  to  look  out 
of  your  window  in  the  morning,  as  I  have 
often  done,  and  see  the  rain  coming  down 
in  torrents,  is  far  from  making  vou  feel 
cheerful.  But,  as  a  rule,  I  have  been  most 
fortunate  in  my  weather.  We  would  meet 
at  Narragansett  Avenue  at  i  p.m.,  and  all 
drive  out  together.  On  reaching  the 
picnic  grounds,  I  had  an  army  of  skir- 
mishers, in  the  way  of  servants,  thrown  out, 


LIFE  AT  NEWPORT. 


to  take  from  each  carria"e  its  contribution 

o 

to  the  country  dinner.  Tlie  band  would 
strike  up,  and  off  the  whole  part}'  would  fly 
in  the  waltz,  while  I  was  directintr  the  iciuQ' 
of  the  champagne,  and  arranging  the 
tables ;  all  done  with  marvelous  celerity. 
Then  came  my  hour  of  triumph,  when,  with- 
out giving  the  slightest  signal  (fearing 
some  one  might  forestall  me,  and  take  off 
the  prize),  I  would  dash  in  among  the 
dancers,  secure  our  society  queen,  and  lead 
with  her  the  way  to  the  banquet.  Now 
begfan  the  fun  in  Qood  earnest.  The  clever 
men  of  the  party  would  assert  their  claims 
to  the  best  dishes,  proud  of  the  efforts  of 
their  cook,  loud  in  their  praise  of  their  own 
game  pie,  which  most  probably  was  brought 
out  by  some  third  party,  too  modest  to 
assert  and  push  his  claim.  Beauty  was 
there  to  look  upon,  and  wit  to  enliven 
the  feast.  The  wittiest  of  men  was  then  in 
his  element,  and  I  only  wish  I  dared  quote 
here  his  brilliant  sallies.  The  beauty  of  the 
land  was  also  there,  and  all  feeling  that 


Il8         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


they  were  on  a  frolic,  they  threw  hauteur, 
ceremonial,  and  grand  company  manners 
aside,  and,  in  place,  assumed  a  spirit  of 
simple  enjoyment.  Toasts  were  given  and 
drunk,  then  a  stroll  in  pairs,  for  a  little 
interchano^e  of  sentiment,  and  then  the 
whole  party  made  for  the  dancing  platform, 
and  a  cotillon  of  one  hour  and  a  half  was 
danced,  till  sunset.  As  at  a  "  Meet,"  the 
arrivals  and  departures  were  a  feature  of 
the  day.  Four-in-hands,  tandems,  and  the 
swellest  of  Newport  turn-outs  rolled  by 
you.  At  these  entertainments  you  formed 
lifetime  intimacies  with  the  most  culti- 
vated and  charming  men  and  women  of 
this  country. 

These  little  parties  were  then,  and  are 
now,  the  stepping-stones  to  our  best  New 
York  society.  People  who  have  been  for 
years  in  mourning  and  thus  lost  sight  of,  or 
who  having  passed  their  lives  abroad  and 
were  forgotten,  were  again  seen,  admired, 
and  liked,  and  at  once  brought  into  so- 
ciety's fold.     Now,  do  not  for  a  moment 


LIFE  AT  NEWPORT. 


119 


imagine  that  all  were  indiscriminately 
asked  to  these  little  fetes.  On  the  con- 
trary, if  you  were  not  of  the  inner  circle, 
and  were  a  new-comer,  it  took  the  com- 
bined efforts  of  all  your  friends'  backing 
and  pushing  to  procure  an  invitation  for 
you.  For  years,  whole  families  sat  on  the 
stool  of  probation,  awaiting  trial  and  ac- 
ceptance, and  many  were  then  rejected, 
but  once  received,  you  were  put  on  an 
intimate  footing  with  all.  To  acquire  such 
intimacy  in  a  great  city  like  New  York 
would  have  taken  )  ou  a  lifetime.  A  fash- 
ionable woman  of  title  from  Enc^land  re- 
marked  to  me  that  we  were  one  hundred 
years  behind  London,  for  our  best  society 
was  so  small,  every  one  in  it  had  an  indi- 
viduality. This,  to  her,  was  charming, 
"  for,"  said  she,  "  one  could  have  no  such 
individuality  in  London."  It  was  accorded 
only  to  the  highest  titled  people  in  all 
England,  while  here  any  one  in  society 
would  have  every  movement  chronicled. 
Your   persofinel,''  she  added,  "  is  daily  dis- 


I20         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


cussed,  your  equipage  is  the  subject  of 
talk,  as  well  as  your  house  and  household." 
Another  Londoner  said  to  me,  "  This 
Newport  is  no  place  for  a  man  without 
fortune."  There  is  no  spot  in  the  world 
where  people  are  more  en  evidence.  It  is 
worth  while  to  do  a  thing-  well  there,  for 
you  have  people  who  appreciate  your  work, 
and  it  tells  and  pays.  It  is  the  place  of  all 
others  to  take  social  root  in. 


SOCIETY'S  LEADERS. 


121 


CHAPTER  X. 


Society's  Leaders  —  A  Lady  whose  Dinners  were  Ex- 
quisite and  -whose  Wines  were  Perfect  —  Her  "  Blue 
Room  Parties" — Two  Colonial  Beauties  —  7 he  Intro- 
duction of  the  Chef —  The  Prince  of  Wales  i?i  New 
York  - —  The  Ball  in  his  Honor  at  the  Academy  of 
Music  —  The  Fall  of  the  Dancing  Platform  —  Gro- 
tesque Figures  cut  by  the  Dancers  —  The  Prince  Dances 
Well  —  Admirable  Supper  Arrangements — A  Light 
Tea  and  a  Big  Appetite —  The  Prince  at  West 
Point  —  I  get  a  Snub  from  General  Scott. 

Society  must  have  its  leader  qr  leaders. 
It  has  always  had  them,  and  will  continue 
to  have  them.  Their  sway  is  more  or  less 
absolute.  When  I  came  to  New  York  as  a 
boy,  forty  years  ago,  there  were  two  ladies 
who  were  skillful  leaders  and  whose  abil- 
ity and  social  power  the  fashionable  world 
acknowledged.  They  gave  the  handsomest 
balls  and  dinners  given  in  this  city,  and 
had  at  them  all  the  brilliant  people  of  that 
period.  Their  suppers,  given  by  old  Peter 
Van  Dyke,  were  famous.     Living  in  two 

adjoining    houses    which  communicated, 

123 


124         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


they  had  superb  rooms  for  entertaining. 
These  were  the  days  when  Isaac  Brown, 
sexton  of  Grace  Church,  was,  in  his  hne,  a 
great  character.  His  memory  was  some- 
thing remarkable.  He  knew  all  and  every- 
thing about  everybody,  knew  always  every 
on"e's  residence,  was  good-nature  itself,  and 
cracked  his  jokes  and  had  a  word  for  every 
one  who  passed  into  the  ball-room.  You 
would  hear  him  sotto  voce  remarking  upon 
men  as  they  passed  :  "  Old  family,  good 
old  stock,"  or  "  He's  a  new  man  ;  he  had 
better  mind  his"  p's  and  q's,  or  I  will  trip 
him  up.  Ah,  here's  a  fellow  who  intends 
to  dance  his  way  into  society.  Here 
comes  a  handsome  boy,  the  women  are 
crazy  about  him,"  etc. 

A  year  or  two  later,  during  my  absence 
in  Europe  and  at  the  South,  a  lady  living 
in  Washington  Place  found  herself  hlling 
a  very  conspicuous  place  in  the  matter  of 
social  entertainment  by  the  departure  of 
her  husband's  relatives,  who  had  been 
society's  leaders,  for  a  prolonged  sta\'  in 


SOCIETY'S  LEADERS. 


125 


Europe.  A  woman  of  charming  manners, 
possessing  eminently  the  talent  of  social 
leadership,  she  took  up  and  easily  carried 
on  society  as  represented  by  the  "smart" 
set.  For  from  six  to  seven  years  she  gave 
brilliant  entertainments  ;  her  dinners  were 
exquisite;  her  wines  perfect;  her  husband's 
Madeiras  are  still  famous.  At  that  time, 
her  small  dances  were  most  carefully 
chosen  ;  they  were  the  acme  of  exclusive- 
ness.  On  this  she  prided  herself.  She 
also  arranged  and  controlled  for  two  years 
(the  winters  of  1870  and  1871)  small  sub- 
scription balls  at  Delmonico's,  Fourteenth 
Street,  in  his  "blue  rooms."  They  were 
confined  to  the  young  men  and  maidens, 
with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of  a  dozen  of 
the  young  married  couples  ;  a  few  elderly 
married  ladies  were  invited  as  matrons. 
These  dances  were  known  and  became 
famous  as  the  "  Blue  Room  parties." 
There  were  three  hundred  subscribers  to 
them.  Ha\ing  a  large  fortune,  she  was 
able  to  gratify  her  taste  in  entertaining. 


126         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


Her  manners  were  charming,  and  she  was 
a  most  pleasing  conversationalist.  Her 
brother-in-law  was  one  of  the  founders  of 
the  Patriarchs,  and  at  a  later  period  her 
two  sons-in-law  also  joined  them,  though 
the  younger  of  the  two,  the  husband  of  her 
accomplished  and  beautiful  daughter,  has 
lived  abroad  for  many  years,  but  is  still 
numbered  among  the  brilliant  members  of 
our  society.  It  was  during  the  winter  of 
1 87 1  that  a  ball  was  given  in  these  same 
rooms  to  Prince  Arthur,  when  on  his  visit 
here.  On  this  occasion,  the  Prince  danced 
with  the  daughter  of  my  old  friend,  the 
Major,  who,  in  air  and  distinction,  was 
unrivaled  in  this  country. 

About  this  time  two  beautiful,  brilliant 
women  came  to  the  front.  They  were 
both  descended  from  old  Colonial  families. 
They  had  beauty  and  wealth,  and  were 
eminently  fitted  to  lead  society.  A  new 
era  then  came  in  ;  old  fashions  passed 
away,  new  ones  replaced  them.  The 
French  cJicf  then  literally,  for  the  first  time, 


SOCIETY'S  LEADERS.  127 

made  his  appearance,  and  artistic  dinners 
replaced  the  old-fashioned,  solid  repasts  of 
the  earlier  period.  We  imported  Euro- 
pean habits  and  customs  rapidly.  Women 
were  not  satisfied  Avith  their  old  modistes, 
but  must  needs  send  to  Paris  for  every- 
thinsf.  The  husband  of  one  of  these  ladies 
had  a  great  taste  for  society,  and  also  a 
great  knowledge  of  all  relating  to  it.  His 
delight  was  to  see  his  beautiful  young  wife 
worshipped  by  everybody,  which  she  was, 
and  she  soon  became,  in  every  sense,  the 
prominent  leader.  All  admired  her,  and 
we,  the  young  men  of  that  period,  loved 
her  as  much  as  we  dared.  All  did  homage 
to  her,  and  certainly  she  was  deserving  of 
it,  for  she  had  every  charm,  and  never 
seemed  to  over-appreciate  herself,  or  rec- 
ognize that  as  Nature  had  lavished  so 
much  on  her,  and  man  had  laid  wealth 
at  her  feet,  she  was,  in  every  sense, 
society's  queen.  She  was  a  woman  sans 
aucune  pretention.  When  you  entered  her 
house,  her  reassuring  smile,  her  exquisitely 


128         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  n\ 


gracious  and  unpretending  manner  of  re- 
ceiving, placed  you  at  your  ease  and  made 
you  feel  welcome.  She  had  the  power 
that  all  women  should  strive  to  obtain,  the 
power  of  attaching  men  to  her,  and  keep- 
ing them  attached  ;  calling  forth  a  loyalty 
of  devotion  such  as  one  imacrines  one 
yields  to  a  sovereign,  whose  subjects  are 
only  too  happy  to  be  subjects.  In  the  way 
of  entertaining,  the  husband  stood  alone. 
He  had  a  handsome  house  and  a  beautiful 
picture  gallery  (which  served  as  his  ball- 
room), the  best  chef  in  the  city,  and 
entertained  royally. 

I  well  remember  being  asked  by  a 
member  of  my  family,  "Why  are  you 
so  eaijer  to  <yo  to  this  leader's  house  ? " 
My  reply  always  was,  "  Because  I  enjoy 
such  refined  and  cultivated  entertainments. 
It  improves  and  elevates  one."  From  him, 
I  literally  took  my  first  lesson  in  the  art  of 
giving  good  dinners.  I  heard  his  criti- 
cisms, and  well  remember  askinc:  old  Mon- 
not,  the  keeper  of  the  New  York  Hotel  : 


SOCIETY'S  LEADERS. 


129 


"  Who  do  you  think  has  the  best  cook  in 
this  city  ?  " 

"  \Vh)-,  of  course,  the  husband  of  your 
leader  of  fashion,  for  the  simple  reason 
that  he  makes  his  cook  oive  him  a  Qood 
dinner  every  day." 

Just  at  this  time  all  New  York  aroused, 
and  put  on  their  holiday  attire  at  the  com- 
ino;  of  the  Prince  of  Wales.  A  g^rand  ball 
at  the  Academy  of  INIusic  was  given  him. 
Our  best  people,  the  smart  set,  the  slow  set, 
all  sets,  took  a  hand  in  it,  and  the  endeavor 
was  to  make  it  so  brilliant  and  beautiful  that 
it  would  always  be  remembered  by  those 
present  as  one  of  the  events  of  their  lives. 

I\ly  invitation  to  the  ball  read  as  follows  : 

THE  GENERAL  COMMITTEE  OF  ARRANGEMENTS 

Invite  Mr.  Ward  McAllister  to  a  Ball  to  be  given 
by  the  Citizens  of  New  York  to  the 

PRINCE  OF  WALES, 

At  the  Academy  of  Music,  on  Friday  Evening,  the  twelfth 
of  October,  i860,  at  Jiine  o'clock. 

Peter  Cooper,  M.  B.  Field, 

Chairman.  Secretary. 


13°         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


The  ball  was  to  be  opened  by  a  Quadrille 
d' Honfiezir.  Governor  and  Mrs.  Morgan. 
Mr.  Bancroft  the  historian,  and  Mrs.  Ban- 
croft, Colonel  and  Mrs.  Abraham  Van 
Buren,  with  others,  were  to  dance  in  it. 
Mrs.  Morgan  had  forgotten  all  she  had 
learned  of  dancing  in  early  childhood,  so  she 
at  once  took  dancincf  lessons.  Fernando 
Wood  was  then  Maj  or  of  New  York.  The 
great  event  of  the  evenini^  was  to  be  the 
opening  quadrille,  and  the  rush  to  be  near 
it  was  so  great  that  the  floor  gave  way  and 
in  tumbled  the  whole  centre  of  the  stac^e. 
I  stood  up  in  the  first  tier,  getting  a  good 
view  of  the  catastrophe.  The  Duke  of 
Newcastle,  with  the  Prince,  who,  as  it 
happened,  was  advancing  to  the  centre  of 
the  stage,  followed  by  all  who  were  to 
dance  in  the  quadrille,  at  once  retired  with 
the  Prince  to  the  reception  room,  while  Mr. 
Renwick,  the  architect,  and  a  gang  of 
carpenters  got  to  work  to  floor  over  the 
chasm.  I  well  remember  the  enormous 
form  of  old  Isaac  Brown,  sexton  of  Grace 


SOCIETY'S  LEADERS 


Church,  rushing  around  and  encouraging 
the  workmen.  A  report  had  been  spread 
that  the  Duke  would  not  allow  the  Prince 
to  again  appear  on  the  stage. 

In  the  mean  while,  the  whole  royal  party 
were  conversing  in  groups  in  the  reception 
room.  The  Prince  had  been  led  into  a 
corner  of  the  room  by  the  Mayor's  daugh- 
ter, when  the  Duke,  feeling  the  young  lady 
had  had  fully  her  share  of  his  Royal  High- 
ness, was  about  to  interrupt  them,  when 
our  distinguished  magistrate  implored  him 
not  to  do  so.  "  Oh,  Duke,"  he  exclaimed, 
"  let  the  young  people  alone,  they  are  en- 
joying themselves."  The  stage  made  safe, 
the  quadrille  was  danced,  to  the  amuse- 
ment of  the  assembled  people.  The  old- 
fashioned  curtseys,  the  pigeon-wings,  and 
genuflexions  only  known  to  our  ancestors 
were  gone  through  with  with  dignity  and 
repose.  Mrs.  Van  Buren,  who  had  pre- 
sided over  the  White  House  during  Martin 
Van  Buren's  presidency,  has  repeatedly 
since  discussed   this   quadrille   with  me. 


132  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


declaring  she  was  again  and  again  on  the 
point  of  laughing  at  the  grotesque  figures 
cut  by  the  dancers, 

"  But,  my  dear  sir,"  she  said,  "  I  did 
nor  permit  my  dignity  and  repose  to  be 
at  all  ruffled  ;  I  think  I  went  through 
the  trying  ordeal  well  ;  but  why,  why  will 
not  our  people  learn  to  dance  !  "  A  waltz 
immediately  followed  the  quadrille ;  the 
Prince,  a  remarkably  handsome  young  man, 
with  blue  eyes  and  light  hair,  a  most  agree- 
able countenance,  and  a  gracious  manner, 
danced  with  Miss  Fish,  Miss  Mason,  Miss 
Fannie  Butler,  and  others,  and  danced  well. 
I  followed  him  with  a  fair  partner,  doing 
all  I  could  to  enlarge  the  dancing  circle. 
He  danced  incessantly  until  supper,  the 
arransfements  for  which  were  admirable. 

One  entered  the  supper  room  by  one 
stage  door  and  left  it  by  another ;  a  horse- 
shoe table  ran  around  the  entire  room, — 
behind  it  stood  an  army  of  servants,  elboAv 
to  elbow,  all  in  livery.  At  one  end  of  the 
room  was  a  raised  dais,  where  the  royal 


9 


SOCIETY'S  LEADERS. 


133 


party  supped.  At  each  stage  door  a  promi- 
nent citizen  stood  g-uard  ;  the  moment  the 
supper  room  was  full,  no  one  else  was  ad- 
mitted. As  fifty  would  go  out,  fifty  would 
come  in.  I  remember  on  my  attempting  to 
get  in  through  one  of  these  doors,  stealthily, 
the  ^■igilant  eye  of  John  Jacob  Astor  met 
mine.  He  bid  me  wait  my  turn.  Nothing 
could  have  been  more  successful,  or  better 
done.  The  house  was  packed  to  repletion. 
Now,  all  was  the  Prince.  The  city  rang 
with  his  name  ;  all  desired  to  catch  a 
glimpse  of  him.  His  own  people  could 
not  have  offered  him  (jreater  homa^je. 

A  friend  of  mine  at  Barrytown  tele- 
graphed me  to  come  to  him  and  pass  Sun- 
day, and  on  Monday  go  with  him  to  West 
Point  to  a  breakfast  to  be  orjven  b\-  Colonel 
Delafield,  the  Commandant  of  the  Point, 
to  the  Prince  of  Wales.  It  was  in  the  fall 
of  the  year,  when  the  Hudson  was  at  its 
best,  clothed  in  its  autiunnal  tints.  I  was 
enraptured  on  looking  out  of  my  win- 
dow on  Sunday  morning  at  the  scene  that 


134         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

lay  before  me,  with  the  river,  Hke  a  tiny 
thread  away  below,  gracefully  flowing 
through  a  wilderness  of  foliage,  the  flock 
of  Southdown  sheep  on  my  friend's  lawn, 
the  picturesque  little  stone  chapel  adjoin- 
ing his  place,  all  in  full  view,  and  the  great 
masses  of  autumn  leaves  raked  in  huge 
piles.  Going  to  church  in  the  morning,  I 
proposed  to  myself  a  ten-mile  walk  in  the 
afternoon  to  get  an  appetite  for  what  I  felt 
sure  would  be  my  friend's  best  effort  in  the 
way  of  a  dinner,  as  he  well  knew  I  loved 
the  "  flesh  pots  of  Egypt."  Fully  equipped 
for  my  walk,  the  butler  entered  my  room 
and  announced  luncheon.  I  declined  the 
meal.  Again  he  appeared,  stating  that  the 
family  insisted  on  my  lunching  with  them, 
as  on  Sunday  it  was  always  a  most  sub- 
stantial repast. 

My  host  now  appeared  to  enforce  the  re- 
quest. I  protested.  "  My  dear  fellow,  I 
can  dine  but  once  in  twenty-four  hours ; 
dinner  to  me  is  an  event ;  luncheon  is  fatal 
to   dinner — takes   off   the   edge  of  )our 


SOCIETY'S  LEADERS.  135 

appetite,  and  then  you  are  unfit  to  do  it 
justice." 

"  Have  it  as  you  will,"  he  replied,  and  off 
I  went.  Returning-,  I  donned  my  dress 
suit,  and  feeling  as  hungry  as  a  hound,  went 
to  the  drawinof-room  to  await  dinner.  Seven 
came,  half  after  seven,  and  still  no  announce- 
ment of  that  meal.  I  felt  an  inward  sink- 
ing- At  eiirht  the  butler  announced  "  Tea 
is  served." 

"  Good  heavens  !  "  I  muttered  to  myself ; 
"I  have  lost  dinner,"  and  woefully  went  in 
to  tea.  I  can  drink  tea  at  my  breakfast,  but 
that  suffices  ;  I  can  never  touch  it  a  second 
time  in  twenty-four  hours.  I  think  m)'  host 
took  in  the  situation,  and  to  intensify  my 
suffering,  walked  over  to  me,  tapping  me  on 
the  back,  exclaiming  : 

"  My  dear  boy,  in  this  house  we  never 
dine  on  Sunday." 

"  Why  in  the  plague,  then,"  I  thought, 
"  did  you  ask  me  up  here  on  a  fast  day  ? 
However,"  I  said  to  myself,  "  I  will  make 
it  up  on  bread  and  butter."    In  we  went 


136 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


to  tea,  and  a  tea  indeed  it  was ;  what  the 
French  would  call  a  "  Soziper  dinatoire" 
the  English,  a  "high  tea,"  a  combination  of 
a  heavy  lunch,  a  breakfast,  and  tea.  No 
hot  dishes,  but  every  cold  delicacy  you 
could  dream  of  ;  a  sort  of  "  whipping  the 
devil  around  the  stump."  No  dinner,  a 
gorgeous  feast  at  tea. 

Down  the  river  the  next  morning  we  went 
to  West  Point,  every  moment  enjoyable, 
and  reached  the  Commandant's  house.  As 
General  Scott  was  presenting  Colonel  Dela- 
field's  guests  to  the  Prince  I  approached  the 
General,  asking  him  to  present  me  to  his 
Royal  Highness.  A  giant  as  he  was  in 
height,  he  bent  down  his  head  to  me,  and 
asked  sharply,  "What  name,  sir?"  I  gave 
him  my  name,  but  at  the  sound  of  "  Mc," 
not  thinking  it  distinguished  enough,  he 
quietly  said,  "  Pass  on,  sir,"  and  I  subse- 
quently was  presented  by  the  Duke  of 
Newcastle. 


Dl-LIGHTS  OF  COUNTRY  LIFE. 


137 


\ 


CHAPTER  XI. 

A  Handsome,  Courtly  Man  ■ —  A  Turkey  Chase  —  A  Visit 
to  Livingston  Manor  —  A>i  Ideal  Life  —  On  Horseback 
from  Staatsburg  to  New  York  —  Village  Inn  Din- 
ners—  /  Entertain  a  Fashionable  Party  at  the  Gibbons 
Mansion  —  A71  Old  House  Rejuvenated —  The  Success 
of  the  Party  —  Country  Life  may  be  Enjoyed  Here  as 
well  as  in  England  if  one  has  the  Money  and  the 
Inclination  for  it  —  It  fneans  Hard  Work  for  the 
Host,  though. 

All  my  life  I  had  been  taught  to  have 
a  sort  of  re\"erence  for  the  name  of  Living- 
ston, and  to  feel  that  Livingston  ^Llnor 
was  a  species  of  palatial  residence,  that 
one  must  see  certainly  once  in  one's 
lifetime.  The  opportunity  offered  itself, 
and  I  seized  upon  it.  The  owner  of  the 
upper  Manor  jokingly  suggested  our  form- 
ing a  party  to  go  there,  and  take  possession 
of  his  house  in  October,  and  see  the  lovely 
autumn  foliage.  By  acclamation,  it  was 
resolved  that  the  project  be  carried  out,  and 
I  went  to  work,  spurring  up  my  old  friend, 
139 


14°         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

the  owner  of  the  Manor,  to  prepare  for  us. 
As  an  important  feature  and  member  of  this 
party,  I  must  here  give  a  sHglit  sketch  of 
one  of  the  handsomest,  most  fascinating, 
most  poHshed  and  courteous  gentlemen  of 
that  or  any  other  period.  We  will  here 
call  him  the  Major  ;  amiability  itself,  a  man 
both  sexes  could  fall  in  love  with.  I  loved 
him  dearly,  and  when  I  lost  him  I  felt  much 
of  the  charm  of  life  had  departed  with  him. 
At  all  these  country  parties,  he  was  al\va}'s 
first  and  foremost.  My  rapidity  of  thought 
and  action  always  annoyed  him.  "  My 
dear  fellow,"  he  would  say,  "  for  heaven's 
sake,  go  slow  ;  you  tear  through  the  streets 
as  if  at  some  one's  bidding.  A  gentleman 
should  stroll  leisurely,  casting  his  eyes  in 
the  shop  windows,  as  if  in  search  of  amuse- 
ment, while  you  go  at  a  killing  pace,  as  if 
on  business  bent.  The  man  of  fashion 
should  have  no  business."  Again,  he  had 
a  holy  horror  of  familiar  garments.  "  My 
dear  boy,"  he  would  smile  and  say,  "  when 
will  you  discard  that  old  coat  ?    I  am  so 


DELIGHTS  OF  COUNTRY  LIFE. 


141 


familiar  with  it,  I  am  fatigued  at  the  sight 
of  it." 

On  one  subject  we  were  always  in  ac- 
cord— our  admiration  for  women.  My  eye 
was  quicker  than  his,  and  I  often  took  ad- 
vantage of  it.  I  would  say,  "  Major,  did 
you  see  that  beauty  ?  By  Jove,  a  most  deli- 
cious creature  ! " 

"Who?    Where?"  he  would  exclaim. 

"Wh\-,  man,"  I  replied,  "she  has  passed 
you  ;  )"ou  have  lost  her." 

"Lost  her!  How  could  }-ou  let  that 
happen  ?  Why,  wh)-  did  )  Ou  not  sooner 
call  my  attention  to  her?" 

Apropos  of  the  Major,  I  must  tell  a  good 
story  at  his  expense  : 

As  my  farm  parties  were  always  gotten 
up  at  a  day's  notice,  I  was  often  in  straits 
to  provide  the  dishes,  for  all  that  was 
wanting  to  complete  the  feast  I  furnished 
myself.  A  boned  turkey,  on  one  occasion, 
w^as  absolutely  necessarj-.  The  day  was 
a  holiday.  I  must  at  once  place  it  in  the 
cook's  hands.    The  shops  were  all  shut, 


142         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


SO  I  suggested  to  the  Major  that  he  drive 
out  with  me  to  my  farm  and  procure  one. 
When  we  reached  the  place,  farmer  and 
family,  we  found,  had  gone  off  visiting; 
there  was  no  one  there.  I  took  in  the 
situation  at  a  glance. 

"  Major,"  I  said,  "  there,  in  that  field,  is  a 
gobbler  ;  that  turkey  you  and  I  have  got 
to  catch,  if  it  takes  us  all  nicrht  to  get  him. 
Positively  I  shall  not  leave  the  place  with- 
out him."  He  looked  aghast.  There  he 
was,  in  Poole's  clothes,  the  best  dressed  man 
in  America!  This  he  always  was.  On 
this  point,  a  friend  once  got  this  off  on 
him.  As  he  was  entering  his  club,  with 
another  well-dressed  man  of  leisure,  this 
gentleman  exclaimed,  "  Behold  them  !  like 
the  lilies  of  the  field,  they  toil  not,  neither 
do  they  spin,  yet  Solomon  in  all  his 
glory  was  not  arrayed  like  one  of  these." 
Clothes,  or  no  clothes,  in  pursuit  of  the 
turkey  we  went.  Over  fences,  under  fences, 
in  barnyards  and  through  fields,  at  a  full 
run,  the  perspiration  pouring   down  the 


DELIGHTS  OF  COUNTRY  LIFE. 


143 


cheeks  of  the  dear  old  Major,  and  I  scream- 
ing encouragement  to  him.  "  Try  it  again, 
Major  !  head  him  off !  now  you  have  him  !  " 

Finall}-,  after  an  hour's  chase,  we  got  the 
bird,  when,  throwing  off  his  coat,  straighten- 
ing himself  up  and  throwing  his  arms 
akimbo,  he  exclaimed,  "  Well,  Mc,  the 
profession  of  a  gentleman  has  fallen  very 
low  when  it  takes  him  to  chasing  turkeys." 

"  My  dear  fellow,"  I  replied,  "  the  great 
Chancellor  Livingston  once  said,  '  a  gentle- 
man can  do  anything ;  he  can  clean  his 
own  boots,  but  he  should  do  it  well.'" 

To  return  to  our  excursion. 

The  party  to  go  up  the  North  River  to 
the  Manor  Livingston,  and  ride  back  to  New 
York,  was  at  once  formed.  My  first  dis- 
cussion with  the  Major  was  as  to  the  pro- 
priety of  taking  a  valet,  he  insisting  it  was 
indispensable,  that  every  college  boy  in 
England,  on  three  hundred  pounds  a  year, 
had  his  valet.  I  contended  that  they  were 
nuisances,  and  it  Avas  not  the  habit  to  in- 
dulge in  them  here.    Besides  this,  our  host 


144         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUXD  IT. 


would  have  his  hands  full  in  carinor  for  us, 
and  would  feel  we  were  imposing  on  him 
if  each  of  us  took  a  man  servant.  This 
settled  it.  The  Major  and  I  were  to  travel 
together  and  meet  the  party  at  Staatsburg. 
Let  me  here  say  that  people  of  the  ^\■orld 
put  up  with  the  annoyance  of  travel  better 
than  any  other  class  of  people. 

The  glorious  morninor  that  we  left  the 
cars  at  Poughkeepsie,  and  mounted  our 
horses,  I  shall  never  forget.  That  lovely 
ride,  from  Poughkeepsie  to  Staatsburg, 
under  that  superb  row  of  old  trees,  put  me 
in  mind  of  the  Lono;  Walk  at  Windsor  ;  it 
is  equally  as  handsome.  We  speculated 
on  the  way  as  to  what  we  were  to  expect. 
"  If  he  has  no  chef,  I  leave  in  twenty-four 
hours,"  exclaimed  mv  friend.  I  assured 
him  we  mi^ht  feel  secure  of  findincr  artistic 
cooking  and  of  having  a  very  jolly  good 
time.  Instead  of  a  palace,  I  found  a  fine, 
old-fashioned  country-house,  very  draughty, 
but  beautifully  placed  amid  magnificent 
forest  trees.     My  first  exploit  was  to  set 


DELIGHTS  OF  COUNTRY  LIFE. 


145 


fire  to  the  carpet  in  m\'  room  by  building-  a 
huge  fire  in  \w\  grate,  to  try  and  keep 
warm.  As  the  Major  put  it,  "  My  dear 
boy,  burn  )'ourself  up  if  )'ou  will,  but 
kindly  remember  you  endanger  all  our 
lives." 

At  eleven  every  morning  we  were  all  in 
the  saddle,  and  went  off  for  a  ride  of  some 
twenty  miles,  lunching  at  some  fine  house 
or  other.  It  was  English  life  to  perfection, 
and  most  enjoyable.  Hyde  Park,  with  two 
superbly  kept  places,  and  its  little  village 
church  on  a  Sunday,  carried  you  back  to 
England,  and  it  seemed  then  to  me  that 
you  there  found  the  perfection  of  country 
life. 

It  was  whilst  dining  in  one  of  these  old 
baronial  mansions,  that  I  conceived  the 
idea  of  transporting  the  whole  party  to  my 
late  father-in-law's  place  at  Madison,  New 
Jersey,  and  giving  them  myself,  in  his  old 
residence,  another  country  entertainment. 
After  inviting  them,  I  began  to  realize 
what  I  had  undertaken.    The  house  itself 


146  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


was  all  one  could  wish,  built  of  brick,  and 
nearly  as  large  as  the  White  House  in 
Washington,  But  it  had  been  shut  up  and 
unoccupied  for  years;  however,  I  was  in  for 
it  and  I  resolved,  in  spite  of  all  difficulties, 
to  carry  it  through  successfully.  After  a 
week  at  the  Manor,  our  whole  party  of 
some  dozen  ladies  and  gentlemen  mounted 
our  horses,  and  rode  down  to  New  York, 
sending  the  servants  ahead  by  rail,  to  en- 
gage apartments,  have  our  rooms  ready, 
and  dinner  prepared  for  us  at  the  village 
inns  where  we  were  to  sleep.  It  was  amus- 
ing to  see  the  gentlemen  in  dress  coats  and 
white  cravats,  and  the  ladies  in  their  hand- 
some toilets,  sitting  down  in  a  villasfe  inn 
to  ham  and  eggs  and  boiled  chicken  and 
cabbage  ;  but,  as  we  had  always  sent  on 
the  wine,  and  had  the  best  of  servants  to 
look  after  everything,  we  enjoyed  these  inn 
dinners  very  much.  Not  a  murmur  from 
any  of  the  ladies  of  any  discomfort ;  they 
found  everything  charming  and  amusing. 
So  day  by  day  we  rode,  chatting  away  and 


DELIGHTS  OF  COUNTRY  LIFE.  I47 


enjoying'  each  other's  soci(;t\',  and  at  niglit, 
after  a  cosy  little  meal,  we  were  all  only 
too  glad  to  seek  the  arms  of  Morpheus. 

When  I  returned  to  my  family  at  New- 
port and  informed  them  of  what  I  had 
done,  that  I  had  invited  a  dozen  of  the 
most  difficile,  fastidious  people  of  Newport 
to  pass  ten  days  with  us  in  New  Jersey,  at 
my  brother-in-law's  then  unoccupied  and 
shut-up  residence,  there  was  but  one  ex- 
clamation, "  You  are  crazy  !  How  could 
you  think  of  such  a  thing  !  How  are  you 
to  care  for  all  these  people  in  that  old 
deserted  house  ? "  All  they  said  did  not 
discourage  me.  I  determined  to  show  my 
friends  that,  though  the  Gibbons  mansion 
was  not  a  Manor  house,  it  was  deserving  of 
the  name,  and  was,  at  that  date,  one  of  the 
handsomest,  largest,  most  substantial,  and 
well-built  residences  at  the  North.  When 
the  Civil  War  broke  out,  my  brother-in-law 
requested  me  to  make  it  my  home. 

I  give  in  detail  all  I  did  to  successfully 
entertain  my  friends  for  ten  da)s  in  this 


148         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


old  family  house,  as  it  may  instruct  others 
how  to  act  in  a  similar  case.  In  London, 
during  the  season,  one  hires  a  house  for  a 
few  days  to  give  a  ball  in,  and  there  are 
many  very  superb  large  houses  used  there 
in  this  way  every  year.  Telegraphing  at 
once  to  the  ao;ent  who  had  charofe  of  this 
house  to  put  an  army  of  scrubbing-women 
in  it,  and  have  it  cleaned  from  cellar  to  orar- 
ret,  I  next  went  into  the  wholesale  business 
of  kerosene  and  lamps.  In  the  country 
particularly  there  is  nothing  like  an  illu- 
mination a  giorno  at  night.  I  hunted  up 
an  experienced  c/ief,  got  my  servants,  and 
then  made  mentis  for  ten  dinners,  lunches, 
and  breakfasts,  as  my  guests  were  asked 
for  a  certain  lenofth  of  time ;  encjacjed  a 
country  band  of  music  for  the  evenings, 
telegraphed  to  Baltimore  for  my  canvas- 
backs,  arranged  for  my  fish,  vegetables,  and 
flowers  to  be  sent  up  by  train  daily  from 
New  York,  purchased  myself  every  article 
of  food  that  I  would  require  to  make  up 
these  menus,  gave  orders  for  my  ices,  bon- 


149 


bons,  and  cakes,  everything  that  must  be 
fresh  to  be  good,  to  come  to  me  by  ex- 
press ;  sent  up  my  wnies,  but  no  Madeira, 
as  I  knew  there  was  enough  of  thai  winv.  in 
the  wine  celhirs  of  that  old  house  to  float  a 
frifjate ;  looked  after  mv  stabling',  and 
found  we  could  stable  twenty  horses  in  a 
fine  brick  stable,  and  house  all  the  drags 
and  vehicles.  The  conservatories  were  full 
of  oranoe  and  lemon  trees.  The  house  it- 
self,  architecturally,  was  a  duplicate  of  the 
White  House  in  Washington,  and  almost 
as  large.  It  had  a  superb  marble  hall, 
20x45,  leading  to  a  dining-room,  36x25. 
The  house  was  built  in  1836,  of  brick, 
in  a  forest  of  trees,  with  the  three  farms 
surrounding  it  really  forming  part  of  the 
grounds,  containing  a  thousand  acres  of 
land.  The  house  and  grounds  cost  in  1836 
over  $150,000.  All  I  had  to  do,  then,  was 
to  reanimate  the  interior  and  take  from 
hidden  recesses  the  fine  old  family  china, 
and  the  vast  quantity  of  silver  accumulated 
in  the  family  for  three  generations.  My 


15°         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


wife's  grandfather  had  been  a  distinguished 
lawyer;  being  wealthy,  he  had  some  of  his 
lawyer's  fees  which  were  paid  in  Spanish 
dollars,  melted  into  plate.  I  only  wish  it 
had  been  my  good  fortune  to  have  secured 
some  of  those  old  grand  silver  salvers. 

Before  a  guest  arrived,  everything  on  and 
about  the  place  had  life  and  animation.  To 
all  my  guests  the  house  was  a  surprise,  for 
it  had  never  before  been  shown  to  fashion- 
able people.  As  on  the  North  River,  we 
passed  the  days  in  the  saddle,  and  driving 
four-in-hands,  lunched  with  many  distin- 
guished people,  at  their  distant  country 
places,  and  lived  for  those  ten  days  as 
thoroughly  an  English  life  as  one  would 
have  lived  at  a  country  house  in  England. 
I  had  invited  young  men  to  come  down 
from  New  York  every  evening  to  join  us 
at  dinner,  and  even  the  fastidious  and 
exacting  Major,  I  think,  was  satisfied  with 
everything.  The  success  of  this  party  evi- 
denced that  a  country  house  can  be  made 
as  perfect  and  enjoyable  here  as  in  any 


DELIGHTS  OF  COUNTRY  LIFE.  15 1 

Other  country,  provided  you  will  take  the 
trouble  and  bear  the  expense.  Now,  New- 
port life  is  wholly  and  entirely  a  contrast  to 
all  this,  for  the  charm  of  that  place  is  its 
society.  You  do  not  brinor  it  there,  but 
find  it  there,  and  it  takes  care  of  itself,  and 
comes  to  you  when  you  wish  it  ;  thus  you 
are  relieved  of  the  care  of  providing  daily 
for  a  large  company,  to  do  which  is  well 
enough  in  England,  where  you  inherit  your 
servants  with  your  fortune,  while  here,  to 
have  things  properly  done,  be  you  who  you 
may,  you  must  give  them  your  time  and 
attention.  This  country  party  I  gave  in 
November,  1862. 


FASHIONABLE  PEOPLE. 


153 


CHAPTER  XII. 


JoJai  Van  Bur  en  s  Dinner  —  /  spend  the  Entire  Day  in 
getting  my  Dress-Coat  —  Lord  Hartington  criticises 
American  Expressions — Contrast  in  our  Way  of 
Living  in  1862  and  1890  —  In  Social  Union  is  Social 
Strength  —  IVe  band  Together  for  our  Common 
Good  —  The  Organisation  of  the  "  Cotillon  Din- 
ners "  —  The  "  Smart  "  Set,  and  the  "  Solid  "  Set  —  A 
Defense  of  Fashion. 

Meeting  John  Van  Buren  as  I  left  the 
cars  in  Jersey  City  to  cross  the  ferry  to 
New  York,  he  insisted  on  my  dining  witli 
him  that  day  at  the  Union  Club,  to  meet 
Lord  Hartington,  and  his  brother,  Lord 
Edward  Cavendish,  to  whom  he  was  oivino- 
a  larg-e  dinner.  I  declined,  as  I  had  no 
dress-suit  in  the  city,  but  he  would  not 
take  no  for  an  answer. 

"  My  dear  man,"  he  said,  "  it  will  be  an 
event  in  your  life  to  meet  these  distinguished 
men.  Jump  in  the  first  train,  return  to 
your  country  home,  and  get  your  dress- 
coat.     By  all  means  you  must  not  miss  my 

155 


I 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


dinner."  As  I  knew  Lord  Frederick  Cav- 
endish so  well,  I  reall}'  wanted  to  meet  his 
brothers,  and  as  no  one  could  send  me  my 
spike-tail  coat  as  they  call  it  at  the  South, 
I  took  a  way  train  and  consumed  the  entire 
day  getting  the  necessary  outfit,  and  return- 
ing with  it  to  the  city.  To  compensate  me 
for  my  day's  work.  Van  Buren  put  me  next 
to  Lord  Hartington.  Chatting  with  him,  I 
asked  him  what  he  had  seen  in  our  habits, 
manners,  and  speech  that  struck  him  as  odd. 
At  first  he  avoided  making  any  criticism, 
but  finally  he  laughingly  replied,  "  The 
way  you  all  have  of  saying  '  Yes,  sir,'  or 
'  No,  sir.'  We  never  do  this  in  England  ; 
it  is  used  thus  only  by  servants."  James 
Brady,  a  great  chum  of  our  host's,  being  at 
the  dinner,  kept  up  an  incessant  fire  at  Van 
Buren,  who  retaliated  with,  "  My  dear 
Lord  Hartington,  pay  no  attention  to  what 
my  friend  Brady  says  ;  all  I  can  say  of  him 
is  that  he  is  a  man  who  passes  one  half  his 
time  in  defending  criminals  and  the  other 
half  in  assailing  patriots,  such  as  myself." 


FASHIONABLE  PEOPLE. 


I  was  well  repaid  for  all  the  trouble  I 
had  taken  to  attend  this  dinner. 

At  this  time  there  were  not  more  than 
one  or  two  men  in  New  York  who  spent,  in 
living  and  entertaining,  over  sixty  thousand 
dollars  a  year.  There  were  not  half  a  dozen 
chefs  in  private  families  in  this  city.  Com- 
pare those  days  to  these,  and  see  how 
easily  one  or  two  men  of  fortune  could  then 
control,  lead,  and  carry  on  society,  receive 
or  shut  out  people  at  their  pleasure.  If 
distincjuished  strancjers  failed  to  brinu"  let- 
ters  to  them,  they  were  shut  out  from 
everything.  Again,  if,  though  charming 
people,  others  w^ere  not  in  accord  with  those 
powers,  they  could  be  passed  over  and  left 
out  of  societ)'.  All  this  many  of  us  saw, 
and  saw  how  it  worked,  and  we  resolved  to 
band  together  the  respectable  element  of 
the  city,  and  by  this  union  make  such 
strength  that  no  individual  could  withstand 
us.  The  motto,  we  felt,  must  be  nojis  nous 
soutejions.  This  motto  we  then  assumed, 
and  we  hold  it  to  this  day,  and  have  found 


158  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

that  the  good  and  wise  men  of  this  commu- 
nity could  always  control  society.  This 
they  have  done  and  are  still  doing.  Our 
first  step  then  in  carrying  out  these  views 
was  to  arrange  for  a  series  of  "  cotillon 
dinners." 

I  must  here  explain,  that  behind  what  I 
call  the  "  smart  set"  in  society,  there  always 
stood  the  old,  solid,  substantial,  and  re- 
spected people.  Families  who  held  great 
social  power  as  far  back  as  the  birth  of  this 
country,  who  were  looked  up  to  by  society, 
and  who  always  could,  when  they  so  wished, 
come  forward  and  exercise  their  power, 
when,  for  one  reason  or  another,  they  would 
take  no  active  part,  joining  in  it  quietly, 
but  not  conspicuously.  Ordinarily,  they 
preferred,  like  the  gods,  to  sit  upon 
Olympus.  I  remember  a  lady,  the  head  of 
one  of  these  families,  stating  to  me  that 
she  had  lived  longer  in  New  York  society 
than  any  other  person.  This  point,  how- 
ever, was  not  yielded  or  allowed  to  go 
undisputed,   for  the  daughter  of   a  rival 


I 


FASHIONABLE  PEOPLE. 


159 


house  contended  that  her  family  had  been 
longer  in  New  York  society  than  any 
other  famil)-,  and  though  she  had  heard 
the  assertion,  as  1  gave  it,  she  would  not 
admit  its  correctness.  What  I  intend  to 
convey  is  that  the  heads  of  these  families, 
feeling  secure  in  their  position,  knowing 
that  they  had  great  power  when  they  chose 
to  exercise  it,  took  no  leading  part  in 
society's  daily  routine.  They  gave  hand- 
some dinners,  and  perhaps,  once  a  year,  a 
fine  ball.  I  know  of  one  or  two  families 
who  have  scrupulously  all  their  lives  avoided 
display,  anything  that  could  make  fashion- 
able people  of  them,  holding  their  own, 
esteemed  and  respected,  and  when  they 
threw  open  their  doors  to  society,  all  made 
a  rush  to  enter.  To  this  day,  if  one  of  these 
old  families,  even  one  of  its  remotest 
branches,  gives  a  day  reception,  you  will 
find  the  street  in  which  they  live  blockaded 
with  equipages. 

For  years  we  have  literally  had  l)ut  one 
salon  in  this  city — a  gathering  in  the  even- 


i6o         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


ing  of  all  the  brilliant  and  cultivated  peo- 
ple, both  young  and  old,  embracing  the 
distinguished  strangers.  A  most  polished 
and  cultivated  Bostonian,  a  brilliant  wo- 
man, was  the  first,  in  my  day,  to  receive 
in  this  way  weekly.  During  her  life  she 
held  this  salon,  both  here,  and  all  through 
the  summer  in  Newport.  "  The  robe  of 
Elijah  fell  upon  Elisha "  in  an  extremely 
talented  woman  of  the  world,  who  has  most 
successfully  held,  and  now  holds,  this  salon, 
on  the  first  day  of  every  week  during  the 
winter,  and  at  Newport  in  summer. 

The  mistake  made  by  the  world  at  large 
is  that  fashionable  people  are  selfish,  frivo- 
lous, and  indifferent  to  the  welfare  of  their 
fellow-creatures  ;  all  of  which  is  a  popular 
error,  arising  simply  from  a  want  of  knowl- 
edo^e  of  the  true  state  of  things.  The 
elegancies  of  fashionable  life  nourish  and 
benefit  art  and  artists  ;  they  cause  the  ex- 
penditure of  money  and  its  distribution  ; 
and  they  really  prevent  our  people  and 
country  from  settling  down   into  a  hum- 


FASHIONABLE  PEOPLE. 


i6i 


drum  rut  and  becoming  merely  a  money- 
making  and  money-saving  people,  with 
nothing  to  brighten  up  and  enliven  life  ; 
they  foster  all  the  fine  arts  ;  but  for  fashion 
what  would  become  of  them  ?  They  bring 
to  the  front  merit  of  every  kind  ;  seek  it  in 
the  remotest  corners,  where  it  modestly 
shrinks  from  observation,  and  force  it  into 
notice  ;  adorn  their  houses  with  works  of 
art,  and  themselves  with  all  the  taste  and 
novelty  they  can  find  in  any  quarter  of  the 
globe,  calling  forth  talent  and  ingenuity. 
Fashionable  people  cultivate  and  refine 
themselves,  for  fashion  demands  this  of 
them.  Progress  is  fashion's  watchword  ;  it 
never  stands  still ;  it  always  advances,  it 
values  and  appreciates  beauty  in  woman 
and  talent  and  o'enius  in  man.  It  is  cer- 
tainly  always  most  charitable  ;  it  surrounds 
itself  with  the  elegancies  of  life  ;  it  soars,  it 
never  crawls.  I  know  the  general  belief  is 
that  all  fashionable  people  are  hollow  and 
heartless.  My  experience  is  quite  the  con- 
trary.    I  have  found  as  warm,  sympathetic, 


1 62         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


lovincj  hearts  in  the  orarb  of  fashion  as  out 
of  it.  A  thorough  acquaintance  with  the 
world  enables  them  to  distinguish  the  wheat 
from  the  chaff,  so  that  all  the  good  work  they 
do  is  done  with  knowledge  and  effect.  The 
world  could  not  dispense  with  it.  Fashion 
selects  its  own  votaries.  You  will  see  cer- 
tain members  of  a  family  born  to  it,  as  it 
were,  others  of  the  same  family  with  none 
of  its  attributes.  You  can  give  no  explana- 
tion.of  this  ;  "  One  is  taken,  the  other  left." 
Such  and  such  a  man  or  woman  are  cited 
as  having  been  always  fashionable.  The 
talent  of  and  for  society  develops  itself  just 
as  does  the  talent  for  art. 


COTILLIONS 
IN  DOORS  AND  OUT. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Cost  of  Cotillion  Dinners  —  My  delicate  Position  —  The 
Debut  of  a  Beautiful  Blonde  —  Lord  Roseberry's  mot — 
We  have  better  Madeira  than  England  —  /  am  dubbed 
"  The  Autocrat  of  Drawing-roo7ns  "  — A  Grand  Domino 
Ball — Cruel  Trick  of  a  fair  Mask  —  An  English 
Lady's  Maid  takes  a  Bath —  The  first  Cotillion  Din- 
ners given  at  Newport — Out-of-Door  Feasting  — 
Dancing  in  the  Barn. 

But  to  return  to  our  Cotillion  Dinners. 
A  friend  thought  they  were  impracticable 
on  account  of  the  expense,  but  I  had  re- 
membered talking  to  the  proprietor  of  the 
famous  Restaurant  Phillipe  in  Paris,  as  to 
the  cost  of  a  dinner,  he  assuring  me  that  its 
cost  depended  entirely  on  what  he  called 
les  primetirs,  i.e.  things  out  of  season,  and 
said  that  he  could  give  me,  for  a  napoleon  a 
head,  an  excellent  dinner,  if  I  would  leave 
out  Ics  pri7neiirs.  Including  them,  the 
same  dinner  would  cost  three  napoleons. 
"  I  can  give  you,  for  instance,"  he  said,  "  a 
filet  de  boeiif  atix  ceps  at  half  the  cost  of  a 

165 


1 66         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


filet  aux  truffes,  and  so  on,  through  the 
dinner,  can  reduce  the  expense."  Submit- 
ting all  this  to  my  friend  Delmonico,  I  sug- 
gested a  similar  inexpensive  dinner,  and 
figured  the  whole  expense  down  until  I 
reduced  the  cost  of  a  cotillion  dinner  for 
seventy-five  or  a  hundred  people  to  ten 
dollars  each  person,  music  and  every  ex- 
pense included.  Calling  on  my  friends, 
they  seconded  me,  and  we  then  had  a 
winter  of  successful  cotillion  dinners.  It 
was  no  easy  task,  however.  How  I  was 
beset  by  the  men  to  give  them  the  women 
of  their  choice  to  take  in  to  dinner  !  and  in 
turn  by  the  ladies  not  to  inflict  on  them  an 
uncongenial  partner.  The  largest  of  these 
dinners,  consisting  of  over  a  hundred  peo- 
ple, we  gave  at  Delmonico's,  corner  of 
Fifth  Avenue  and  Fourteenth  Street,  in 
the  largre  ball-room.  The  table  was  in  the 
shape  of  a  horseshoe,  I  stood  at  the  door 
of  the  salon,  naming  to  each  man  the  lady 
he  was  to  take  in  to  dinner,  and  well  re- 
member one  of  them  positively  refusing  to 


COTILLIOYS  IN  DOORS  AND  OUT. 


167 


accept  and  take  in  a  lady  assigned  to  him  ; 
and  she,  just  entering,  heard  the  dispute, 
and,  in  consequence,  would  never  again  at- 
tend one  of  these  dinners.  Sittinof  at  the 
head  of  the  table,  -with  the  two  young 
and  beautiful  women  who  were  then  the 
grandes  davics  of  that  time,  one  on  either 
side  of  me,  we  had  opposite  to  us,  on  the 
other  side  of  the  narrow,  horseshoe  table, 
a  young  blonde  bride,  who  had  just  en- 
tered society.  I  well  remember  the  criti- 
cisms  these  o^rand  ladies  made  of  and  about 
her.  The  one,  turning  to  me,  said,  "  And 
this  is  your  lovely  blonde,  the  handsomest 
blonde  in  America!"  The  other,  the  best 
judge  of  her  sex  that  I  have  ever  seen, 
then  cast  her  horoscope,  saying,  "  I  con- 
sider her  as  beautiful  a  blonde  as  I  have 
ever  seen.  That  woman,  be  assured,  will 
have  a  brilliant  career.  Such  women  are 
rare."  These  words  were  prophetic,  for 
that  beautiful  bride,  crossing  the  ocean  in 
her  husband's  yacht,  wholly  and  solely  by 
her  beaut\'  cf^iined  for   her  husband  and 


i68         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


herself  a  brilliant  position  in  London  soci- 
ety. Turning  to  me,  the  lady  who  had 
made  this  remark  asked  me  how  she  her- 
self looked.  I  replied,  "  Like  Venus  rising 
from  the  sea."  My  serenity  was  here  dis- 
turbed by  finding-  that  one  of  the  ladies, 
disliking  her  next  neighbor,  as  soon  as  she 
discovered  by  the  card  who  it  was,  had  qui- 
etly made  an  exchange  of  cards,  depriving 
a  young  gallant  of  the  seat  he  most  cov- 
eted, and  for  which  he  had  long  and  earn- 
estly prayed.  Of  course,  I  was  called  to 
explain,  and  quiet  the  disturbed  waters. 
The  gentleman  was  furious,  and  threatened 
dire  destruction  to  the  culprit.  I  took  in 
the  situation,  and  protected  the  fair  lady 
by  sacrificing  the  waiter.  After  the  ladies 
left  the  table,  at  these  dinners,  the  gentle- 
men were  given  time  to  smoke  a  cigar  and 
take  their  coffee.  On  this  occasion,  the 
Earl  of  Roseberry  was  a  guest.  Whilst 
smokinof  and  commenting-  on  the  dinner, 
he  said  to  me,  "You  Americans  have 
made  a  mistake  ;    your  emblematic  bird 


COTILLIONS  IN  DOORS  AND  OUT.  169 


should  have  been  a  canvasback,  not  an 
eagle." 

It  was  either  to  this  cHstinofuished  man 
or  the  Earl  of  Cork,  at  one  of  these  after- 
dinner  conversations,  that  I  held  forth  on 
the  treatment  of  venison,  asserting  that 
here,  we  always  serve  the  saddle  of  venison, 
whilst  in  England  they  give  the  haunch. 
And  when  they  send  it  off  to  a  friend,  they 
box  it  up  in  a  long  narrow  box,  much 
resembling  a  coffin.  The  reason  for  this 
was  given  me, — that  their  dinners  were 
larger  than  ours,  and  there  was  not  enough 
on  a  saddle  for  an  Eno-Hsh  dinner.  A^ain, 
I  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  here  we 
eat  the  tenderloin  steak,  there  they  eat  the 
rump  steak,  which  we  give  to  our  servants. 
The  reason  for  this,  I  was  told,  was  that 
they  killed  their  cattle  younger  than  we 
killed  ours,  and  did  not  work  those  in- 
tended for  beef.  On  Madeira,  I  stated, 
"we  had  them,"  for,  I  said,  "You  have 
none  to  liken  unto  ours";  though  later  on, 
at  another  dinner,  when  I  made  this  asser- 


170  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


tion,  the  Duke  of  Beaufort  took  me  up  on 
this  point,  and  insisted  upon  it  that  in  many 
of  the  old  country  houses  in  England  they 
had  excellent  Madeira. 

The  following  anonymous  lines  on  this 
•dinner  were  sent  to  me  the  day  afterwards : 

There  ne'er  was  seen  so  fair  a  sight 
As  at  Delmonico's  last  night; 
When  feathers,  flowers,  gems,  and  lace 
Adorned  each  lovely  form  and  face  ; 
A  garden  of  all  thorns  bereft, 
The  outside  world  behind  them  left. 
They  sat  in  order,  as  if  "  Burke  " 
Had  sent  a  message  by  his  clerk. 
And  by  whose  magic  wand  is  this 
All  conjured  up?  the  height  of  bliss. 
'Tis  he  who  now  before  you  looms, — 
The  Autocrat  of  Drawing  Rooms. 

One  of  the  events  of  this  winter  was  a 
gfrand  domino  ball,  the  laro-est  ever  griven 
here.  Our  Civil  War  was  then  raging;  a 
distinguished  nobleman  appeared  at  that 
ball  with  his  friend,  a  member  of  Parlia- 
ment. Before  he  could  enter  the  ball- 
room, a  domino  stepped  up  to  him  and 
had  an  encounter  of  words  with  him. 
"Are  you  as  brave  as  you  look?"  she 


COTILLIONS  m  DOORS  AND  OUT.  171 


asked;  "will  you  do  a  woman's  bidding? 
I  challenge  you  to  grant  me  my  request  ! " 
"What  is  it?"  he  asked.  "Allow  mc  to 
pin  on  this  badge  ?"  "  Certainly,"  was  the 
gallant  reply.  As  he  passed  through  the 
rooms,  it  was  seen  that  he  was  wearing  a 
Secession  badoe.  It  was  thoucrht  to  be  an 
intended  affront  to  Northern  people,  and 
was  immediately  resented.  His  friend,  the 
member  of  Parliament,  hearing  of  it,  at 
once  went  up  to  him  and  removed  the 
badge.  Man)-  felt  that  this  distinguished 
man  was  simply  the  victim  of  a  cruel,  mis- 
chievous, and  silly  woman. 

The  followimr  summer,  as  I  had  been 
so  hospitably  entertained  in  Nassau,  at 
Government  House,  I  invited  my  old 
friend,  the  Governor  of  the  Bahamas,  to 
pay  me  a  visit  at  Newport.  On  a  beauti- 
ful summer  afternoon,  I  drove  up  to  the 
Brevoort  House,  and  there  I  found  him 
literally  surrounded  by  all  his  worldly 
goods,  his  entire  household,  with  all  their 
effects.     It  took  two  immense  stages  and 


172  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


a  huge  baggage  wagon  to  convey  them  to 
the  Fall  River  boat.  Imagine  this  party 
coming  from  an  island  where  it  was  a 
daily  struggle  to  procure  food,  viewing  the 
sumptuous  supper-tables  of  these  magnifi- 
cent steamers  (which  certainly  made  a 
great  impression  on  them,  for  it  caused 
them  to  be  loud  in  their  expressions  of 
astonishment  and  admiration).  Reaching 
Newport  at  2  a.m.,  on  attempting  to  go 
ashore,  I  found  His  Excellency  had  lost  all 
his  tickets.  Our  sharp  Yankee  captain 
took  no  stock  in  people  who  did  such 
things ;  so  out  came  the  Englishman's 
pocket-book  to  pay  again  for  the  entire 
party,  the  dear  old  gentleman  declaring  it 
was  his  fault,  and  he  ought  to  be  made  to 
pay  for  such  carelessness.  It  did  not  take 
me  long  to  convince  our  captain  that  we 
were  not  sharpers  ;  that  we  had  paid  our 
passages,  and  we  must  needs  be  allowed  to 
go  ashore. 

I  was  determined  to  evidence  to  my 
guests  that  they  had  reached  the  land  of 


COTILLION'S  IN  DOORS  AND  OUT.  I73 


plenty,  and  before  they  had  been  with  me  a 
week,  the  Governor  declared,  with  a  sigh, 
"  That  he  detested  the  siofht  of  food."  I 
put  him  through  a  course  of  vapor  baths, 
and  galloped  him  daily.  On  one  occasion, 
we  visited  the  beach  together,  when  the 
surf  was  full  of  people.  We  saw  an  enor- 
mously tall,  Rubens-like  woman,  clad  in  a 
clinging  garment  of  calico,  exhilarated  by 
the  bath,  jumping  up  and  down,  and  in 
her  ecstasy  throwing  her  arms  up  over  her 
head.  "Who  is  the  creature?"  he  ex- 
claimed. "  Is  this  allowed  here  !  W^hy, 
man,  you  should  not  tolerate  it  a  mo- 
ment ! "  I  gave  one  look  at  the  female, 
and  then,  convulsed  with  laughter,  seized 
his  arm,  exclaiming,  "  It  is  your  wife's 
Encrlish  maid  ! "  If  I  had  griven  him  an 
electric  shock,  he  could  not  have  sprung 
out  of  the  wagon  quicker.  Rushing  to 
the  water's  edge,  he  shouted,  "  Down  with 
you  !  down  with  you,  this  instant,  you 
crazy  jade  !  how  dare  )  ou  disgrace  me 
in  this  way  ! "     The  poor  girl,  one  could 


174 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


see,  felt  innocent  of  all  wrong,  but  quitted 
the  water  at  lightning  speed  when  she  saw 
the  crowd  the  Governor  had  drawn  around 
him. 

The  first  Cotillion  Dinner  ever  o-iven  at 
Newport,  I  gave  at  my  Bayside  Farm.  I 
chose  a  night  when  the  moon  would  be  at 
the  full,  and  invited  guests  enough  to  make 
up  a  cotillion.  We  dined  in  the  open  air 
at  6  P.M.,  in  the  garden  adjoining  the  farm- 
house, having  the  gable  end  of  the  house 
to  protect  us  from  the  southerly  sea  breeze. 
In  this  way  we  avoided  flies,  the  pest  of 
Newport.  In  the  house  itself  we  could  not 
have  kept  them  from  the  table,  while  in 
the  open  air  even  a  gentle  breeze,  hardly 
perceptible,  rids  you  of  them  entirely.  The 
farm-house  kitchen  was  then  near  at  hand 
for  use.  You  sat  on  closely  cut  turf,  and 
with  the  little  orarden  filled  with  beautiful 
standing  plants,  the  eastern  side  of  the 
farm-house  covered  with  vines,  laden  with 
pumpkins,  melons,  and  cucumbers,  all  giv- 
ing a  mixture  of   bright  color  against  a 


I 


COTILLIONS  IN  DOORS  AND  OUT.  I75 

ereen  backaround,  with  the  whole  farm 
lying-  before  you,  and  beyond  it  the  bay 
and  the  distant  ocean,  dotted  over  with 
sailing  craft,  the  sun,  sinking  behind  the 
Narragansett  hills  bathing  the  Newport 
shore  in  golden  light,  giving  you,  as  John 
Van  Buren  then  said  to  me,  "  As  much  of 
the  sea  as  you  ever  get  from  the  deck  of 
a  yacht."  Add  to  this,  the  exquisite  toilets 
which  our  women  wear  on  such  occasions, 
a  table  laden  with  every  delicacy,  and  all 
in  the  merriest  of  moods,  and  )'ou  have  a 
picture  of  enjoyment  that  no  shut-in  ball- 
room could  present.  No  "pent-up  Utica" 
then  confined  our  powers.  Men  and 
women  enjoyed  a  freedom  that  their  rural 
surroundings  permitted,  and,  like  the  lambs 
gambolling  in  the  fields  next  them,  they 
frisked  about,  and  thus  did  away  with  much 
of  the  stiff  conventionality  pertaining  to  a 
city  entertainment. 

On  this  little  farm  I  had  a  cellar  for 
claret  and  a  farm-house  attic  for  Madeira, 
where  the  cold  Rhode  Island  winters  have 


176  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


done  much  to  preserve  for  me  wines  of 
seventy  and  eighty  years  of  age.  On  this 
occasion,  I  remember  giving  them  Amory 
of  181 1  (one  of  the  greatest  of  Boston 
Madeiras),  and  I  saw  the  men  hold  it  up  to 
the  Hght  to  see  its  beautiful  amber  color, 
inhale  its  bouquet,  and  quaff  it  down  "  with 
tender  eyes  bent  on  them." 

A  marked  feature  of  all  my  farm  din- 
ners was  Diiidonneanx  a  la  To7i/ouse,  and 
a  la  Bordciaise  (chicken  turkeys).  In  past 
days,  turkeys  were  thought  to  be  only  fine 
on  and  after  Thanksgiving  Day  in  Novem- 
ber, but  I  learnt  from  the  French  that  the 
turkey  poiilt  with  quenelle  de  volatile,  with 
either  a  white  or  dark  sauce,  was  the  way  to 
enjoy  the  Rhode  Island  turkey.  I  think  they 
were  first  served  in  this  way  on  my  farm 
in  Newport.  Now  they  are  thus  cooked 
and  accepted  by  all  as  the  summer  delicacy. 

After  dinner  we  strolled  off  in  couples  to 
the  shore  (a  beach  three-quarters  of  a  mile 
in  length),  or  sat  under  the  group  of  trees 
looking  on  the  beautiful  bay. 


COTILLIONS  IN  DOORS  AND  OUT.  I77 

I\Iy  brother,  Colonel  McAllister,  had  ex- 
ercised his  engineering-  skill  in  fitting  up 
my  barn  with  every  kind  and  sort  of  light. 
He  improvised  a  chandelier  for  the  center 
of  it,  adorned  the  horse  and  cattle  stalls 
with  vines  and  greens,  fitted  them  up  with 
seats  for  my  guests  (all  nicely  graveled),  and 
put  a  band  of  music  in  the  hay-loft,  with 
the  middle  part  of  the  barn  floored  over  for 
dancinor.  We  had  a  scene  that  Teniers  has 
so  often  paintedr  We  danced  away  late 
into  the  niofht,  then  had  a  orlorious  moon- 

o  <_> 

light  to  drive  home  by. 

I  must  not  omit  to  mention  one  feature 
of  these  parties.  It  was  the  "Yacht  Club 
rum  punch,"  made  from  old  Plantation  rum, 
placed  in  huge  bowls,  with  an  immense 
block  of  ice  in  each  bowl,  the  melting  ice 
being  the  only  liquid  added  to  the  rum,  ex- 
cept occasionally  when  I  would  pour  a  bot- 
tle of  champagne  in,  which  did  it  no  injury. 


AN  ERA  OF 
AT  EXTRAVAGANCE. 


179 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  first  private  Balls  at  Delvionico' s — A  Nightingale 
•who  drove  Four-in-hatid — Private  Theatricals  iti  a 
Stable — A  Yachting  Excursion  without  wind  and  a 
Clam-bake  under  difficulties — A  Poet  describes  the 
Fiasco — Plates  for foot-stools  and  parboiled  Champagne 
for  the  thirsty —  The  Silver,  Gold,  a?id  Diamond  Vin- 
ners — Giving  presents  to  guests. 

Let  us  now  return  to  New  York  and  its 
gaieties.  The  Assemblies  were  always 
given  at  Dclnionico's  in  Fourteenth  Street, 
the  best  people  in  the  city  chosen  as  a 
committee  of  management,  and  under  the 
patronage  of  ladies  of  established  position. 
They  were  large  balls,  and  embraced  all 
who  were  in  what  may  be  termed  General 
Society.  They  were  very  enjoyable.  A 
distinguished  banker,  the  head  of  one  of 
our  old  families,  then  gave  the  'v^xsl  private 
ball  at  Delmonlco's  to  introduce  his  dauQ^h- 
ters  to  society.  It  was  superb.  The  Del- 
monico  rooms  were  admirably  adapted  for 
such  an  entertainment.  There  were  at 
least  eight  hundred  people  present,  and  the 

i8i 


1 82         SOCIETY  AS  I  IIAI'E  FOUND  IT. 


host  brought  from  liis  well-filled  cellar  his 
best  Madeira  and  Mock.  His  was  the 
pioneer  private  ball  at  this  house.  Being  a 
success,  it  then  became  the  fashion  to  give 
private  balls  at  Delmonico's,  and  certainly 
one  could  not  have  found  better  rooms  for 
such  a  purpose.  One  of  the  grandest  and 
handsomest  fancy  balls  ever  given  here  was 
griven  in  these  rooms  a  little  later.  Absent 
at  the  South,  I  did  not  attend  it.  Then 
came  in  an  era  of  great  extravagance  and 
expenditure. 

A  beautiful  woman,  who  was  a  night- 
ingale  in  song,  gave  a  fancy  ball.  It  was 
brilliantly  successful,  and  brought  its 
leader  to  the  front,  and  gave  her  a  large 
following.  It  made  her,  with  the  personal 
attractions  she  possessed,  the  belle  of  that 
winter.  Among  other  accomplishments, 
she  drove  four  horses  beautifulh'.  I  re- 
member during  the  summer  passing  her  on 
Bellevue  Avenue  as  she  sat  perched  up  on 
the  box-seat  of  a  drag,  driving  four  fine 
horses,  handling  the  ribbons  with  a  grace 


AN  ERA   OF  GREAT  EXTRAVAGANCE.  183 

and  ease  that  was  admirable.  All  paid 
court  to  her.  She  won  the  hearts  of  both 
men  and  women. 

At  this  time  a  man  of  great  energy  and 
pluck  loomed  up,  and  attracted,  in  fact 
absorbed  to  a  great  extent,  the  attention 
of  society.  Full  of  energy  and  enterprise, 
and  supplied  with  abundant  means,  he  did 
a  great  deal  for  New  York,  much  that  will 
live  after  him.  He  created  Jerome  Park; 
and  not  only  created  it,  but  got  society 
into  it.  He  made  it  the  Goodwood  of 
America,  and  caused  society  to  take  an 
interest  in  it.  He  opened  that  park  most 
brilliantly,  and,  by  his  energy  and  persever- 
ance, rendered  it  for  years  a  most  enjoy- 
able place  for  all  New  Yorkers.  Admiring 
the  beautiful  cantatrice,  he  proposed  to 
her  to  turn  his  luxurious  stables  into  a 
theatre,  and  ask  the  fashionable  world  to 
come  and  see  her  act  "  for  sweet  charity's 
sake," — to  raise  funds  for  the  sick  and 
wounded  soldiers.  In  doine  this,  he  as- 
sured  her  that  she  would  literally  bring  the 


184  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


fashionable  world  to  her  feet  to  petition 
and  sue  for  tickets  of  admission  to  this 
theatrt.  And  so  it  proved.  All  flocked  to 
see  this  accomplished  woman  act.  The 
work  of  this  energetic  man  was  admirably 
done.  He  made  a  gem  of  his  stable.  I 
can  but  compare  it  to  a  little  royal  theatre. 
As  you  entered  you  were  received  by 
liveried  servants,  and  by  them  conducted 
to  your  seat,  where  you  found  yourself 
surrounded  by  a  most  brilliant  assemblage  ; 
and  on  the  stage,  as  amateur  actresses, 
supporting  the  fair  singer,  the  fashionable 
beauties  of  that  day.  This  was  not  the 
least  of  this  generous  man's  performances. 
Being  an  admirable  four-in-hand  driver,  he 
at  once  revived  the  spirit  for  driving  four 
horses.  He  turned  out  daily  Avith  his  drag 
or  coach  loaded  with  beautiful  women,  and 
drove  to  every  desirable  little  country  inn 
in  and  about  the  city,  where  one  could  dine 
at  all  well,  crossing  ferries,  and  dri\'ing  up 
Broadway  with  the  ease  and  skill  of  a 
veteran  whip,  which  he  was.     His  projects 


AN  ERA  OF  GREAT  EXTRAVAGANCE.  185 

were,  if  anythinsj,  too  orand.  He  lavished 
money  on  all  these  things  ;  his  conceptions 
were  good,  but,  like  many  great  minds,  at 
times  he  was  too  unmindful  of  detail.  On 
one  occasion,  at  Newport,  he  came  to  me, 
and  told  me  he  had  mapped  out  a  country 
fete,  asked  my  advice  about  getting  it  up, 
but  failed  to  take  it,  and  then  brought 
about  his  first  fiasco.  He  asked  the  bcaii 
mondc  to  embark  on  the  yachts  then  lying 
in  the  harbor,  and  go  with  him  to  Stone 
Bridge  to  a  dance  and  clambake.  All 
the  yachtsmen  placed  their  yachts  at  his 
disposal.  At  12  m.,  all  Newport,  i.e.  the 
fashion  of  the  place,  was  on  these  yachts. 
At  the  prow  of  the  boats  he  had  placed  his 
champagne.  Down  came  the  broiling  sun, 
and  a  dead  calm  fell  upon  the  waters. 
Tugs  were  called  in  to  tow  the  yachts. 
Orders  had  been  given  that  not  a  biscuit 
or  glass  of  wine  was  to  be  served  to  any 
of  the  party  on  these  boats,  that  we  might 
reach  the  feast  at  the  Bridge  with  sharp 
appetites.    The  sun  went  down,  and  the 


1 86         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

night  set  in  before  Ave  landed.  We  were 
then  taken  to  an  orchard,  the  high  grass  a 
foot  deep  all  wet,  and  saw  before  us  great 
plates  of  stewed  soft  clams  and  corn  that 
had  been  cooked  and  ready  for  us  at  2  p.m. 
The  women  j)ut  their  plates  on  the  grass, 
and  their  feet  in  them,  so  at  least  to  have 
a  dry  footing.  The  champagne  was  par- 
boiled, the  company  enveloped  in  darkness, 
and  famished,  so  that  all  pronounced  this 
kind  of  clambake  picnic  a  species  of  fSte 
not  to  be  indulged  in  knowinoly  a  second 
time.  The  great  wit  of  the  day,  his  boon 
companion,  called  it  "The  Melancholy 
Fete."  The  following  anonymous  lines  on 
this  clambake  were  sent  me  : 

An  Adaptation  of  a  Lamentation. 

Clams,  clams,  clams, 

Will  always  be  thrown  in  my  teeth. 
Clams,  clams,  clams  ! 

I'll  be  crowned  with  a  chowder  wreath. 

Bread  and  pickles  and  corn. 

Corn  and  pickles  and  bread. 
Whenever  I  sleep  huge  ghosts  appear 

With  ^■/(j'worous  mouths  to  be  fed. 


AN  ERA  OF  GREAT  EXTRAVAGANCE.  187 


Oh,  women,  with  appetites  strong  ! 

Oh,  girls,  who  I  thought  lived  on  air! 
I  did  not  mean  to  leave  you  so  long 

With  nothing  to  eat,  I  declare. 

Clams,  clams,  clams  ! 

I  have  nothing  but  clams  on  the  brain. 
I'm  sure  all  my  life,  and  after  my  death 

I'll  be  roasted  and  roasted  again. 

Oh,  tugs,  why  could  you  not  pull  ? 

Oh,  winds,  why  would  you  not  blow  ? 
Yxh  sure  1  did  all  that  man  could  do 

That  my  clambake  shouldn't  be  slow. 

Not  in  the  least  discouraged  by  this 
failure,  returning  to  New  York,  he  planned 
three  dinners  to  be  given  by  himself  and 
two  of  his  friends,  to  be  the  three  hand- 
somest dinners  ever  given  in  this  city. 
Lorenzo  Delmonico  exclaimed,  "  What  are 
the  people  coming  to  !  Here,  three  gentle- 
men come  to  me  and  order  three  dinners, 
and  each  one  chargfes  me  to  make  his 
dinner  the  best  of  the  three.  I  am  oiven 
an  unlimited  order,  'Charge  what  you  will, 
but  make  my  dinner  the  best.' "  Del- 
monico then  said  to  me,  "  I  told  my  cook 
to  call  them  the  Silver,  Gold,  and  Diamond 


i88         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


dinners,  and  have  novelties  at  them  all." 
I  attended  these  three  dinners.  Among 
other  dishes,  we  had  canvasback  duck,  cut 
up  and  made  into  an  aspic  de  canvasback, 
and  again,  string  beans,  with  truffles,  cold, 
as  a  salad,  and  truffled  ice  cream  ;  the  last 
dish,  strange  to  say,  very  good.  At  one 
dinner,  on  opening  her  napkin,  each  fair 
lady  guest  found  a  gold  bracelet  with  the 
monogram  of  Jerome  Park  in  chased  gold 
in  the  centre.  Now  it  must  be  remem- 
bered that  this  habit  of  oivingf  ladies 
presents  at  dinners  did  not  originate  in 
this  city.  Before  my  day,  the  wealthy 
William  Gaston,  a  bachelor,  gave  superb 
dinners  in  Savannah,  Ga.,  and  there,  always 
placed  at  each  lady's  plate  a  beautiful 
Spanish  fan  of  such  value  that  they  are 
preserved  by  the  grandchildren  of  those 
ladies,  and  are  proudly  exhibited  to  this 
day. 


ON  THE  BOX  SEAT  AT 
NEWPORT. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

The  Foiir-tii-Hand  Craze  —  Posiiltons  a>td  Outriders 
Follow  —  A  Trotting-Horse  Cotcrtship  —  Cost  of  New- 
port Picnics  Then  and  Now  —  Driving  off  a  Bridge  — 
An  Accident  that  might  have  been  Serious  —  A  Dance 
at  a  Tea-house —  The  Coachmen  make  a  Raid  on  the 
Champagne —  77/^1'  are  all  Intoxicated  and  Confusion 
Reigns  —  A  Dangerous  Drive  Home. 

It  seemed  at  this  time,  that  the  ingen- 
uity of  man  was  put  to  the  test  to, invent 
some  new  species  of  entertainment.  The 
winter  in  New  York  being-  so  gay,  peo- 
ple were  in  the  vein  for  frohc  and  amuse- 
ment, and  feehng  rich,  as  the  currency  was 
inflated,  prices  of  everything  going  up, 
Newport  had  a  full  antl  rushing  season. 
The  craze  was  for  drags  or  coaches. 
My  old  friend,  the  Major,  was  not  to  be 
outdone,  so  he  brought  out  four  spank- 
ing bays  ;  and  again,  an  old  bachelor  friend 
of  mine,  a  man  of  large  fortune,  but  the 
quietest  of  men,  I  found  one  fine  summer 

igi 


192  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

morninor  seated  on  the  box  seat  of  a  drae, 
and  tooling-  four  fine  roadsters.  But  this 
did  not  satisfy  the  swells.  Soon  came  two 
out-riders  on  postilion  saddles,  following 
the  drag;  and  again,  several  pairs  of  fine 
horses  ridden  by  postilions  a  la  deini 
d' Aiiviont.  A  turnout  then  for  a  picnic 
was  indeed  an  event.  In  those  clays,  a 
beautiful  spot  on  the  water,  called  "  The 
Glen,"  was  often  selected  for  these  country 
parties.  It  was  a  romantic  little  nook, 
about  seven  miles  from  Newport,  on  what 
is  called  the  East  Passage,  which  opens  on 
the  Atlantic  Ocean. 

A  young  friend  of  mine,  then  paying- 
court  to  a  brilliant  young  woman,  came  to 
me  for  advice.  He  wanted  to  impress  the 
object  of  his  attentions,  and  proposed  to 
do  so  by  hiring  "two  of  the  fastest  trotting 
horses  in  Rhode  Island,  and  driving  the 
young  lady  out  behind  them  to  the  "Glen" 
picnic.  His  argument  was,  that  it  was 
more  American  than  any  of  your  tandem 
or  four-in-hands,  or  postilion  riding;  that 


ON  THE  BOX  SEAT  AT  NEWPORT.  I93 

the  pace  he  should  go  at  would  be  terrific, 
and  he  would  guarantee  to  do  the  seven 
miles  within  twenty  minutes.  He  was 
Avhat  we  call  a  thorough  trotting-horse 
man  ;  much  in  love  ;  worshipped  horses  ; 
disliked  st)"le  in  them,  going  in  for  speed 
alone.     I  tried  to  dissuade  him. 

"  It  will  never  do,"  I  said  ;  "  it  is  not  the 
fashion  ;  the  lady  )ou  drive  out  will  be 
beautifully  dressed,  and  you  will  cover  her 
with  dust ;  besides,  the  pace  will  alarm 
her." 

"  Never  fear  that,  my  man,"  he  answered. 
"  The  girl  has  grit ;  she  will  go  through 
anything.  She  is  none  of  )our  milk-and- 
water  misses  ;  I  can't  go  too  fast  for  her." 

"  Have  it  as  you  will,  then,"  I  said  ; 
and  off  he  went  to  Providence  to  secure, 
through  influence,  these  two  wonderfully 
speedy  trotters. 

We  were  all  grouped  beautifully  at  the 
Glen,  when,  all  of  a  sudden,  we  heard 
something  descending  the  hill  at  a  terrific 
pace  ;  it  was  impossible  to  make  out  what 


194         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


it  was,  as  it  was  completely  hidden  by  a 
cloud  of  dust.  Down  it  came,  with  light- 
ning speed,  and  when  it  got  opposite  to 
the  Major  and  me,  we  heard  a  loud 
"  Whoa,  my  boys,  whoa  !"  and  the  vehicle 
came  to  a  stop.  The  occupants,  a  man  and 
woman,  were  so  covered  with  mud  and  dust 
that  you  could  barely  distinguish  the  one 
from  the  other.  I  ran  up  to  the  side  of  the 
wagon,  saw  a  red,  indignant  face,  and  an 
outstretched  hand  imploring  me  to  take 
her  out.  Seizing  my  arm,  she  sprang 
from  the  wagon,  exclaiming,  "The  horrid 
creature  !  I  never  wish  to  lay  eyes  on  him 
again,"  and  then  she  burst  into  tears.  Her 
whole  light,  exquisite  dress  was  totally 
ruined,  and  she  a  sight  to  behold.  Turn- 
ing to  him,  I  saw  a  glow  of  triumph  in  his 
face  ;  his  watch  was  in  his  hand.  "  I  did 
it,  by  Jove!  I  did  it.  and  ten  seconds  to 
spare  ! — they  are  tearers  !  " 

I  quietly  replied,  "  They  are  indeed 
tearers,  they  have  torn  your  business  into 
shreds." 


ON  THE  BOX  SEAT  AT  NEWPORT.  195 


"  Fudge,  man  !  "  he  said  ;  "  she  wont 
mind  it;  she  was  a  bit  scared,  to  be  sure; 
"  but  she  hung  on  to  my  arm,  and  we  came 
through  all  right."  He  then  sought  his 
victim.  I  soon  saw  by  his  dejected  man- 
ner that  she  had  given  him  the  mitten, 
and,  as  I  passed  him,  slowly  w^alking  his 
horses  home,  I  philosophized  to  this  ex- 
tent :  "  Trottinfj  horses  and  fashion  do  not 
combine." 

Our  next  great  day-time  frolic  was  at 
Bristol  Ferry.  There  we  had  a  large 
country  hotel  which  we  took  possession 
of.  We  sfot  the  best  dinner  Oliver  then 
in  Newport  to  lend  us  his  chef,  and  I  took 
my  own  colored  cook,  a  native  of  Balti- 
more, who  had,  at  the  Maryland  Ducking 
Club,  gained  a  reputation  for  cooking 
game,  ducks,  etc.  We  determined,  on  this 
occasion,  to  have  a  trial  of  artistic  skill 
between  a  creole  woman  cook,  the  best  of 
her  class,  and  the  best  chef  we  had  in  this 
country.  We  were  to  have  sixty  at  din- 
ner ;  dishes  confined  to  Spanish  mackerel 


196         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

soft-shell  crabs,  woodcock,  and  chicken  par- 
tridges. It  is  needless  to  say,  the  French- 
man came  off  victorious,  though  my  creole 
cook  contended  that  the  French  chef  would 
not  eat  his  own  cooked  dishes,  but  de- 
voured her  soft-shell  crabs. 

On  this  occasion  we  had  a  ofrand  turn- 
out  of  drags,  postilions  a  la  dcini  d' Aumont, 
and  tandems.  I  led  the  cotillion  myself, 
dancing  in  the  large  drawing-room  of  the 
inn  ;  and  it  all  went  so  charmingly  that  it 
was  late  into  the  night  when  we  left  the 
place.  It  was  as  dark  as  Erebus.  We  had 
eleven  miles  to  drive,  and  I  saw  that  some 
of  our  four-in-hand  drivers  felt  a  little 
squeamish.  My  old  bachelor  friend  had  in 
his  drag  a  precious  cargo.  On  the  box-seat 
with  him  sat  our  nicrhtincrale,  and  I  had 
in  my  four-seated  open  wagon  our  queen 
of  society  and  a  famous  Baltimore  belle. 
"Is  the  road  straight  or  crooked?"  I 
was  asked,  on  all  sides.  Having  danced 
myself  nearly  to  death,  and  being  well 
fortified    with    champagne,    I    found  it 


ON  THE  BOX  SEAT  AT  NEWPORT.  197 


Straight  as  an  arrow,  as  I  was  then  obhvi- 
ous  to  its  crooks  and  turns.  Off  we  all 
started  up  the  hill  at  a  canter.  I  re- 
member my  friend,  the  Major,  shouting 
to  me,  "  The  devil  take  the  hindmost," 
and  the  admonition  to  him  of  his  old 
family  coachman,  who  accompanied  him 
that  day,  "  Be  careful,  sir,  the  road  is 
not  as  straight  as  it  might  be."  Driving 
along  at  a  spanking  pace,  the  horses 
fresh,  the  ladies  jubilant,  I  as  happy  as 
a  lord, — there  was  a  scream,  then  another, 
then  a  plunge,  and  a  splash  of  water. 
Dark  as  it  was,  standing  up  in  my 
wagon,  I  shouted,  "  By  Jove  !  he  has 
driven  off  the  bridge," — and  off  the  bridge 
he  was,  drag  upset  and  four  horses  mired 
in  mud  and  water.  One  young  fellow,  in 
the  excitement  of  the  moment,  sprang 
to  the  side  of  my  wagon,  and  tried  to 
wrench  off  one  of  my  lamps.  How  then 
I  admired  the  pluck)-,  cool  little  woman 
at  \w\  side  !  She  never  lost  her  presence 
of   mind    for   a  second  ;    gave  directions 


198         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


quietly  and  effectively,  and  soon  brought 
order  out  of  chaos.  From  a  jolly,  festive 
procession,  we  were  turned  into  a  sad, 
melancholy  species  of  funeral  cortege. 
The  ladies  were  picked  out  of  the  wreck, 
and  placed  in  the  different  drags  and 
wagons,  and  we  wended  on  our  way  at  a 
walk,  ten  dreary  miles  to  Newport.  One 
brilliant  youth  of  the  Diplomatic  Corps, 
as  we  passed  a  farm-house,  making  it 
just  out  in  the  dark,  was  asked  to  pro- 
cure for  our  invalids  a  glass  of  water. 
He  rushed  to  the  house,  banging  against 
the  door,  and  shouting,  "  House,  house, 
house,  wont  you  hear,  wont  you  hear?" 
The  old  farmer  poked  his  head  out  of 
the  window,  answering  him,  "  Why,  man, 
the  house  can't  talk  !  what  do  you  want 
here  at  this  time  of  night  ?  I  know 
who  you  are,  you  are  some  of  McAllister's 
picnickers.  I  saw  you  go  by  this  morn- 
ing. I  s'pose  you  want  milk,  but  you 
wont  get  a  drop  here." 

As  picnics,  country  dinners,  and  'break- 


0-V  THE  BOX  SEAT  AT  NEWPORT.  199 


fasts  were  then  Newport's  feature,  they  took 
the  place  of  balls,  all  the  dancing'  and  much 
of  the  dining  being  done  in  the  open  air. 
I  would  here  say  that  as  every  family  took 
to  these  parties  their  butler,  and  carried 
out  the  wines  and  all  the  dishes,  their  cost 
in  money  was  insignificant.  We  would 
pay  twenty-five  dollars  for  the  farm  or 
grove  to  which  we  went  for  the  day. 
Twenty-five  dollars  for  the  country  band, 
as  much  for  the  hire  of  silver,  linen,  crock- 
er\',  etc.,  and  ten  dollars  for  a  horse,  wagon 
and  man  to  take  everything  out,  making 
the  entire  outlay  in  money  on  each  occa- 
sion eighty-five  to  a  hundred  dollars.  A 
picnic  dinner  and  dance  at  my  farm,  furnish- 
ing everything  myself,  no  outside  contribu- 
tions, for  fifty  or  sixty  people,  would  cost 
me  then  three  hundred  dollars,  everything 
included.  What  a  difference  to  the  present 
time  !  I  got  up  one  of  these  country 
dances  and  luncheons  summer  before  last 
at  my  farm,  where,  under,  a  pretty  grove 
of  trees,  I   had  built  a  dancing  platform 


200         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


from  which  )'ou  can  throw  a  biscuit  into 
the  beautiful  waters  of  Narragansett  Ba)'. 
Lending  the  farm  to  the  party,  every  one 
bringing  a  dish,  hiring  the  servants  and 
music,  cost  us  in  money  eight  hundred  and 
six  dollars  and  eighty-four  cents.  There 
were  140  people  present.  The  railroad 
running  through  the  farm,  the  train 
stopped  on  the  place  itself  within  a  few 
rods  of  the  group  of  trees.  Leaving  New- 
port at  2  P.M.,  in  six  minutes  we  are  on 
the  place,  and  at  a  quarter  of  five  the  train 
returned  to  us,  thus  ridding  ourselves  of 
coachmen  and  grooms,  finding  them  all  at 
the  railway  station  when  we  reached  Nevv^- 
port  on  our  return  at  5  p.m.,  to  take  us 
for  our  usual  afternoon  drive. 

But  to  return  to  the  past.  When  New- 
port was  in  its  glory,  and  outshone  itself, 
the  young  men  of  that  day  resolved  to  give 
me  a  lesson  in  picnic-giving.  What  they 
had  done  well  in  and  about  New  York,  they 
felt  they  could  do  equally  well  in  Newport, 
so  they  sent  to  the  city  for  Delmonico  with 


ON  THE  BOX  SEAT  AT  NEWPORT.  201 


all  his  staff,  and  invited  all  Newport  to  a 
dance  and  country  dinner  at  a  large  tea- 
house some  six  miles  from  Newport,  adjoin- 
ing Oaklands,  the  then  Gibbs  farm,  later 
on  the  property  of  Mr.  August  Belmont, 
and  now  belonging  to  Mr.  Cornelius  Van- 
derbilt,  being  his  model  farm,  one  of  the 
loveliest  spots  on  Newport  Island.  Del- 
monico  took  possession  of  this  huge  bar- 
rack of  a  house,  and  to  work  his  waiters 
went  to  arrange  in  the  large,  old  dining- 
room  his  beautiful  collation,  which  was  all 
brought  from  New  York.  The  entire  party 
were  dancing  the  cotillion  in  the  front 
parlor  of  the  house,  and  grouped  on  its 
front  piazzas.  As  5  p.^i.  approached,  an 
irresistible  desire,  an  inward  cravinof  for 
food,  became  apparent.  Committeemen 
were  beset  with  the  question,  when  are  Ave 
going  to  have  the  collation  ?  They  rushed 
off  to  hurry  up  things,  and  then  one  by  one 
reappeared  with  blanched  faces,  and  an  un- 
mistakable anxious,  troubled  look.  Finally 
they  came  to  me  with,  "  My  dear  fellow. 


202 


SOCIETY  AS  I  11. WE  FOUND  IT. 


what  is  to  be  done  ?  Come  and  see  for 
yourself."  Dragging  nie  into  the  dining- 
room  and  pantries  of  the  hotel  I  there  in- 
deed saw  a  sight  to  behold.  All  the  coach- 
men and  grooms  had  made  a  foray  on  the 
abundant  supplies,  tumbled  Delmonico's 
French  waiters  into  the  cellar  of  the  hotel, 
and  locked  them  up  ;  then,  taking  posses- 
sion of  the  dinino^-room,  held  hioh  carnival. 
Every  mouthful  of  solid  food  was  eaten  up, 
and  all  the  champagne  drunk  ;  the  ices, 
jellies,  and  cohfectionery  they  left  un- 
touched. As  I  viewed  the  scene,  I  re- 
called Virgil's  description  of  a  wreck, 
'^Apparent  rari  in  gitrgite  nantesy  Every 
coachman  and  groom  was  intoxicated,  and, 
as  the  whole  party  at  once  took  flight  to 
secure  dinner  at  home,  the  scene  on  the 
road  beggared  description.  The  coach- 
men swayed  to  and  fro  like  the  pendulum 
of  a  clock ;  the  postilions  of  the  dcini 
d' Atimonts  hung  on  by  the  manes  of  their 
horses,  when  they  lost  their  equilibrium. 
The  women,  as  usual,  behaved  admirably. 


ON  THE  BOX  SEAT  AT  NEWPORT  203 


As  one  said  to  me,  "  My  man  is  beastly  in- 
toxicated, but  I  shall  appear  not  to  notice 
it.  The  horses  are  gentle,  they  will  go  of 
themselves."  My  old  friend,  the  Major,  at 
once  held  a  council  of  war,  and  it  was  sug- 
ofested  that  all  turn  in  and  thrash  the  fel- 
lows  soundl)-,  but  prudence  dictated  that 
at  that  work  man  was  as  good  as  master, 
that  the  result  might  be  doubtful ;  so  all 
dolefully  got  away  in  the  best  manner  pos- 
sible. The  Major  thus  harangued  his  old 
family  coachman  :  "  Richard,  I  am  aston- 
ished at  you  ;  the  other  men's  rascally  con- 
duct does  not  surprise  me,  but  )'Ou,  an 
old  family  servant,  to  so  disgrace  yourself, 
shocks  me."  The  reply  w'as,  "  I  own  up, 
Major,  but  indade,  I  am  a  weak  craythur." 


SOCIAL  UNITY. 


205 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

Grand  Banquet  to  a  Bride-elect  —  She  sat  in  a  bank  of 
Roses  wi't/t  Fountains  playing  around  her  —  An  Anec- 
dote of  Alinack's —  The  way  the  Duke  of  Wellington 
introduced  my  Father  and  Dominick  Lynch  to  the 
Swells — I  determine  to  have  an  Americaft  Almacks'  — 
The  way  the  "  Patriarchs'"  was  foutided — 77/,?  One- 
man  Power  Abolished  —  Success  of  the  Organization. 

The  two  young  women  of  the  most  dis- 
tinguished bearing  in  my  day  in  this 
country  were,  in  my  opinion,  the  one  the 
daughter  of  our  ex-Secretary  of  State  and 
ex-Governor,  the  other  the  daughter  of  my 
friend,  the  Major.  They  both  looked  as 
born  of  noble  race,  and  were  always,  when 
they  appeared,  the  centre  of  attraction. 
When  the  engagement  of  the  Major's 
daufjhter  was  announced,  one  of  her  ad- 
mirers  asked  me  to  qto  with  him  to  Charles 
Delmonico,  as  he  was  desirous  of  o  jvinof  this 
fair  lady  a  Banquet,  to  commemorate  the 
initial  step  she  had  taken  in  w^oman's  career. 
In  the  words  of  the  poet,  she  was  then 

"  A  thought  matured,  but  not  uttered, 

A  conception  warm  and  glowing,  not  yet  embodied." 

207 


2o8         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


Now,  all  was  to  expand  into  noble  woman- 
hood, and  she  must  needs  put  away  child- 
ish things  and  bid  a  sweet  farewell  to  all 
who  had  worshipped  at  her  shrine.  This 
worshipper  wanted  to  make  this  an  occa- 
sion in  her  life,  as  well  as  his  ;  so  with  Del- 
monico's  genius  we  were  to  conceive  a  ban- 
quet for  this  fair  maid,  at  which,  like  a 
Queen  of  May,  she  was  to  sit  in  a  bower  of 
roses.  And  this  she  literally  did,  placed 
there  by  her  host,  a  scion  of  one  of  New 
York's  oldest  families,  whose  family  was  in. 
terwoven  with  the  Livingstons,  and  by  mar- 
riage closely  connected  with  the  great  Rob- 
ert Fulton.  It  was  the  first  of  these  lavish 
and  gorgeous  entertainments,  known  as 
Banquets.  Fifty-eight  guests  dining  in 
Delmonico's  large  ball-room  ;  the  immense 
oval  table  fillinor  the  whole  room,  and 
covered  with  masses  of  exquisite  flowers. 
There  were  three  fountains,  one  in  the 
centre,  and  the  others  at  each  end  of  the 
table,  throwing  up  a  gentle  spray  of  water, 
but  always  so  planned  that  nothing  on  the 


SOCIAL  LWITY. 


table  in  any  way  impeded  the  sight  ;  one 
from  all  sides  of  it  could  see  over  these 
beauliful  tlower-beds  and  throui^h  the 
S[)ray.  A  cotillion  followed  the  dinner, 
and  then  back  all  returned  to  the  dining- 
room  and  supped  as  the  early  dawn  crept 
on  us. 

Close  association  at  a  small  watering- 
place  naturally  produces  jars.  People 
cannot  alwa}"s  agree.  When  )ou  become 
very  rich  and  powerful,  and  people  pay 
you  court,  it  follows  in  many  cases  that 
you  become  exacting  and  domineering.  It 
soon  became  evident  that  people  of  moder- 
ate means,  who  had  no  social  iK)wer  to 
boast  of,  must  needs  be  set  aside  and 
crowded  out  if  the  one-man  power,  or  even 
the  united  power  of  two  or  three  colossally 
rich  men,  controlled  society.  One  reflected 
that  that  would  not  \vork.  The  homa^re 
we  pay  to  a  society  leader  must  come  from 
the  esteem  and  admiration  which  is  felt  for 
him,  but  must  not  be  exacted  or  forced. 
It  occurred  then  to  me,  that  if  one  in  any 


2IO         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

way  got  out  with  the  powers  that  be,  his 
position  might  become  critical,  and  he  so 
forced  out  of  the  way  as  to  really  lose 
his  social  footing.  Where  then  was  the 
remedy  for  all  this  ?  How  avoid  this  con- 
tingency ?  On  reflection  I  reached  this 
conclusion,  that  in  a  country  like  ours  there 
was  always  strength  in  union  ;  that  to 
blend  together  the  solid,  respectable  ele- 
ment of  any  community  for  any  project, 
was  to  create  a  power  that  would  carry  to 
success  almost  any  enterprise  ;  therefore, 
returning  to  New  York  for  the  winter,  I 
looked  around  society  and  invoked  the  aid 
of  the  then  quiet  representative  men  of 
this  city,  to  help  me  form  an  association 
for  the  purpose  of  giving  our  winter 
balls. 

As  a  child,  I  had  often  listened  with  great 
interest  to  my  father's  account  of  his  visit 
to  London,  with  Dominick  Lynch,  the 
greatest  swell  and  beau  that  New  York  had 
ever  known.  He  would  describe  his  going 
with  this  friend  to  Almack's,  finding  them- 


SOCIAL  UNITY, 


211 


selves  in  a  brilliant  assemblage  of  people, 
kno\vin<'-  no  one,  and  no  one  deifrninsj'  to 
notice  them  ;  Lynch,  turning  to  my  father, 
exclaimed  :  "  Well,  mv  friend,  oeese  in- 
deed  were  we  to  thrust  ourselves  in  here 
where  we  are  evidently  not  wanted."  He 
had  hardly  finished  the  sentence,  when  the 
Duke  of  Wellington  (to  whom  they  had 
brought  letters,  and  who  had  sent  them 
tickets  to  Almack's)  entered,  looked  around, 
and,  seeing  them,  at  once  approached 
them,  took  each  by  the  arm,  and  walked 
them  twice  up  and  down  the  room  ;  then, 
pleading  an  engagement,  said  "  good- 
ni<;ht  "  and  left.  Their  countenances  fell 
as  he  rapidly  left  the  room,  but  the  door 
had  barely  closed  on  him,  when  all  crowded 
around  them,  and  in  a  few  minutes  they 
were  presented  to  every  one  of  note,  and 
had  a  charmino;  evenino-.  He  described 
to  US  how  Almack's  originated, — all  by  the 
banding  together  of  powerful  women  of 
influence  for  the  purpose  of  getting  up 
these  balls,  and  in  this  way  making  them 


212 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


the  greatest  social  events  of  London 
society. 

Remembering  all  this.  I  resolved  in  1872 
to  establish  in  New  York  an  American 
Almack's,  taking  men  instead  of  women, 
being  careful  to  select  only  the  leading 
representative  men  of  the  city,  Avho  had 
the  right  to  create  and  lead  society.  I 
knew  all  would  depend  upon  our  making 
a  proper  selection. 

There  is  one  rule  in  life  I  invariably 
carry  out — never  to  rely  wholly  on  my  own 
judgment,  but  to  get  the  advice  of  others, 
weigh  it  well  and  satisfy  myself  of  its  cor- 
rectness, and  then  act  on  it.  I  went  in 
this  city  to  those  who  could  make  the  best 
analysis  of  men  ;  who  knew  their  past  as 
well  as  their  present,  and  could  foresee 
their  future.  In  this  way,  I  made  up  an 
Executive  Committee  of  three  gentlemen, 
who  daily  met  at  my  house,  and  we  went 
to  work  in  earnest  to  make  a  list  of  those 
we  should  ask  to  join  in  the  undertaking. 
One  of  this    Committee,   a  very  bright, 


SOCIAL  UNITY. 


213 


clever  man,  hit  upon  the  name  of  Patri- 
archs for  the  Association,  -which  was  at 
once  adopted,  and  then,  after  some  discus- 
sion, we  Hmited  the  number  of  Patriarchs 
to  twenty-five,  and  that  each  Patriarch,  for 
his  subscription,  should  have  the  right  of 
invitinir  to  each  ball  four  ladies  and  five 
gentlemen,  including  himself  and  famil)' ; 
that  all  distinguished  strangers,  up  to  fifty, 
should  be  asked  ;  and  then  established  the 
rules  £rovernin<j  the  trivinor  of  these  balls — 
all  of  which,  with  some  slight  modifications, 
have  been  carried  out  to  the  letter  to  this 
clay.  The  following  gentlemen  were  then 
asked  to  become  "  Patriarchs,"  and  at  once 
joined  the  little  band  : 


JOHN  JACOB  ASTOR, 
WILLIAM  ASTOR, 
DE  LANCEY  KANE, 
WARD  MCALLISTER, 
GEORGE  HENRY  WARREN, 
EUGENE  A.  LIVINGSTON, 
WILLIAM  BUTLER  DUNCAN, 
E.  TEMPLETON  SNELLING, 
LEWIS  COLFORD  JONES, 
JOHN   W.  HAMERSLEY, 
BENJAMIN  S.  WELLES, 
FREDERICK  SHELDON, 


ROYAL  PHELPS, 
EDWIN  A.  POST, 
A.  GRACIE  KING, 
LEWIS  M.  RUTHERFURD, 
ROBERT  G.  REMSEN, 
WM.  C.  SCHERMERHORN, 
FRANCIS  R.  RIVES, 
MATURIN  LIVINGSTON, 
ALEX.   VAN  RENSSELAER, 
WALTER  LANGDON, 
F.   G.  D'hAUTEVILLE. 
C.  C.  GOODHUE, 


WILLIAM  R.  TRAVERS. 


214         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


The  object  we  had  in  view  was  to  make 
these  balls  thoroughly  representative ;  to 
embrace  the  old  Colonial  New  Yorkers,  our 
adopted  citizens,  and  men  whose  ability  and 
integrity  had  won  the  esteem  of  the  com- 
munity, and  who  formed  an  important  ele- 
ment in  society.  We  wanted  the  money 
power,  but  not  in  any  way  to  be  controlled 
by  it.  Patriarchs  were  chosen  solely  for 
their  fitness  ;  on  each  of  them  promising 
to  invite  to  each  ball  only  such  people  as 
would  do  credit  to  the  ball.  We  then  re- 
solved that  the  responsibility  of  inviting 
each  batch  of  nine  guests  should  rest  upon 
the  shoulders  of  the  Patriarch  who  invited 
them,  and  that  if  any  objectionable  element 
was  introduced,  it  was  the  Management's 
duty  to  at  once  let  it  be  known  by  whom 
such  objectionable  party  was  invited,  and 
to  notify  the  Patriarch  so  offending,  that  he 
had  done  us  an  injury,  and  pray  him  to  be 
more  circumspect.  He  then  stood  before 
the  community  as  a  sponsor  of  his  guest, 
and  all  societ)',  knowing  the  offense  he  had 


SOCIAL   UNITY.  215 

committed,  would  so  upbraid  him,  that  he 
would  go  and  sin  no  more.  We  knew 
then,  and  we  know  now,  that  the  whole 
secret  of  the  success  of  these  Patriarch 
Balls  la)-  in  making"  them  select  ;  in  mak- 
ino-  them  the  most  brilliant  balls  of  each 
winter  ;  in  making  it  extremely  difficult  to 
obtain  an  invitation  to  them,  and  to  make 
such  invitations  of  great  value ;  to  make 
them  the  stepping-stone  to  the  best  New 
York  society,  that  one  might  be  sure  that 
any  one  repeatedly  invited  to  them  had  a 
secure  social  position,  and  to  make  them  the 
best  managed,  the  best  looked-after  balls 
given  in  this  city.  I  soon  became  as  much 
interested  in  them  as  if  I  were  cjivino-  them 
in  my  own  house  ;  their  success  I  felt  was 
my  success,  and  their  failure,  my  failure  ; 
and  be  assured,  this  identifying  oneself  with 
any  undertaking  is  the  secret  of  its  success. 
One  should  never  say,  "  Oh,  it  is  a  subscrip- 
tion ball  ;  I'm  not  responsible  for  it."  It 
must  always  be  said,  "  I  must  be  more  care- 
ful in  doing  this  for  others,  than  in  doing  it 


2l6         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


for  myself."  Nothing  must  be  kept  in  view 
but  the  great  result  to  be  reached,  i.e.  the 
success  of  the  entertainment,  the  pleasure 
of  the  whole.  When  petitioned  to  curtail 
the  expense,  lower  the  subscription,  our 
reply  has  always  been,  "  We  cannot  do  it 
if  it  endancrers  the  success  of  the  balls. 

<_> 

While  we  give  them,  let  us  make  them  the 
great  social  events  in  New  York  society  ; 
make  our  suppers  the  best  that  can  be 
given  in  this  city  ;  decorate  our  rooms  as 
lavishly  as  good  taste  permits,  spare  no  ex- 
pense to  make  them  a  credit  to  ourselves 
and  to  the  great  city  in  which  they  are 
given." 

The  social  life  of  a  great  part  of  our  com- 
munity, in  my  opinion,  hinges  on  this  and 
similar  organizations,  for  it  and  they  are 
organized  social  power,  capable  of  giving  a 
passport  to  society  to  all  worthy  of  it.  We 
thought  it  would  not  be  wise  to  allow  a 
handful  of  men  having  ro}-al  fortunes  to 
have  a  sovereign's  prerogative,  i.e.  to  say 
whom  society  shall  receive,  and  whom  so- 


SOCIAL  UXITY. 


217 


ciety  shall  shut  out.  We  thought  it  better 
to  tr\-  and  place  such  power  \\\  the  hands  of 
representative  men,  the  choice  falling'  on 
them  solely  because  of  their  worth,  respect- 
ability, and  responsibility. 


A  GOLDEN  AGE  OF  FEASTING. 


2ig 


CHAPTER  XVII- 


A  Lady  who  has  hd  Society  for  many  Years  —  A  Grand 
Dame  indeed  —  The  Patriarchs  a  great  social 
Feature  —  Organizing  the  F.  C.  D.  C.  —  Their  Rise 
and  Fall —  The  Mother  Goose  Ball — Afy  Encounters 
with  socially  ambitious  Workers  —  /  try  to  Please 
all— The  Famous  "  Szvan  Dinner" — It  cost  $10,000 
—  A  Lake  on  the  Dinner-table  —  l^ie  Swans  have  a 
mortal  Combat. 

As  a  rule,  in  this  city,  heads  of  faniiHes 
came  to  the  front,  and  took  an  active  part 
in  society  when  they  wished  to  introduce 
their  daughters  into  it. 

The  first  Patriarch  Balls  were  given  in  the 
winters  of  1872  and  1873.  ^"^t  '^^"''^  period, 
a  great  personage  (representing  a  silent 
power  that  had  always  been  recognized 
and  felt  in  this  community,  so  long  as  I 
remember,  by  not  only  fashionable  people, 
but  by  the  solid  old  quiet  element  as  well) 
had  daughters  to  introduce  into  society, 
which  brought  her  prominently  forward 
and  caused  her  at  once  to  take  a  leading 


2  22         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


position.  She  possessed  great  administra- 
tive power,  and  it  was  soon  put  to  good 
use  and  felt  by  society.  I  then,  for  the 
first  time,  was  brouoht  in  contact  with  this 
grande  dame,  and  at  once  recognized  her 
ability,  and  felt  that  she  would  become 
society's  leader,  and  that  she  was  admirably 
qualified  for  the  position. 

It  was  not  long  before  circumstances 
forced  her  to  assume  the  leadership,  which 
she  did,  and  which  she  has  held  with 
marked  ability  ever  since,  •  having  all  the 
qualities  necessary, — good  judgment  and  a 
great  power  of  analysis  of  men  and  women, 
a  thorouo-h  knowledge  of  all  their  surround- 
ings,  a  just  appreciation  of  the  rights  of 
others,  and,  coming  herself  from  an  old 
Colonial  family,  a  good  appreciation  of  the 
value  of  ancestry ;  always  keeping  it  near 
her,  and  brinoinsf  it  in,  in  all  social  mat- 
ters,  but  also  understanding  the  importance 
and  power  of  the  new  element;  recogniz- 
ing it,  and  fairly  and  generously  awarding 
to  it  a  prominent  place.    Having  a  great 


A  GOLD  EX  AGE  OF  FEASTING. 


223 


fortune,  she  had  the  ability  to  conceive  and 
carr}-  out  social  projects  ;  and  this  she  has 
done,  al\va\s  \vith  success,  ever  ready  to 
recoofnize  abilit\'  and  worth,  and  oive  to  it 
advice  and  assistance.  Above  all  things,  a 
true  and  loyal  friend  in  sunshine  or  shower. 
Deeply  interested  in  the  welfare  of  this 
city,  she  lent  herself  to  any  undertaking 
she  felt  worthy  of  her  support,  and  once 
promising  it  her  aid,  she  could  be  always 
relied  on  and  always  found  most  willing  to 
advance  its  interests.  With  such  a  friend, 
we  felt  the  Patriarchs  had  an  additional 
social  strength  that  would  give  them  tlie 
solidity  and  lasting  powers  which  they 
have  shown  they  possess.  Whenever  we 
required  advice  and  assistance  on  or  about 
them,  we  went  to  her,  and  always  found 
ourselves  rewarded  in  so  doing  by  re- 
ceiving suggestions  that  were  invaluable. 
Quick  to  criticise  any  defect  of  lighting  or 
ornamentation,  or  arrangement,  she  was 
not  backward  in  chiding  the  management 
for  it,  and  in  this  way  made  these  balls 


224 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


what  they  were  in  the  past,  what  they  are 
in  the  present,  and  what  we  hope  they  may 
be  in  the  future. 

The  Patriarchs,  from  their  very  birth, 
became  a  great  social  feature.  You  could 
but  read  the  list  of  those  who  gave  these 
balls,  to  see  at  a  glance  that  they  em- 
braced not  only  the  smart  set,  but  the 
old  Knickerbocker  families  as  well  ;  and 
that  they  would,  from  the  very  nature  of 
the  case,  representing  the  best  society  of 
this  great  commercial  city,  have  to  grow 
and  enlarge.  Applications  to  be  made 
Patriarchs  poured  in  from  all  sides  ;  every 
influence  Avas  brought  to  bear  to  secure  a 
place  in  this  little  band,  and  the  pressure 
Avas  so  great  that  we  feared  the  struggle 
would  be  too  fierce  and  engender  too 
much  rancor  and  bad  feeling,  and  that 
this  might  of  itself  destroy  them.  The 
aro^Liment  against  them,  the  one  most 
strongly  urged,  was  that  they  were  over- 
turnino[-  all  old  customs  ;  that  New  Yorkers 
had  been  in  the  habit  of  taking  an  active 


A  GOLDEN  AGE  OF  FEASTING. 


225 


part  in  society  only  when  they  had  daugh- 
ters to  bring  out,  laiicdc-inq-  their  daugh- 
ters, and  they  themselves  taking  a  back 
seat.  But  that  here  in  this  new  associa- 
tion, the  married  women  took  a  more 
prominent  place  than  the  }-oung  girls  ;  //icy 
were  the  belles  of  the  balls,  and  not  the 
young  girls.  This  was  Europeanizing  New 
York  too  rapidly. 

Hearing  all  this,  and  fearing  we  would 
grow  unpopular,  to  satisfy  the  public  we  at 
once  got  up  a  new  association,  wholly  for 
the  young  girls,  and  called  it  The  Family 
Circle  Dancing"  Class.  Its  name  would  in 
itself  explain  what  it  was,  a  small  gathering 
of  people  in  a  very  small  and  intimate  way, 
so  that  unless  one  was  in  close  intimacy 
with  those  getting  up  these  dances,  they 
would  have  no  possible  claim  to  be  in- 
cluded in  them.  Any  number  of  small 
subscription  parties  had  been  formed,  such 
as  "  The  Ancient  and  Honorables,"  "  The 
New  and  Notables,"  "  The  Mysterious," 
and  "  The  Fortnightlies."    All  had  been 


2  26         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


most  enjoyable,  but  short-lived.  The  F. 
C.  D.  C's.  were  to  be,  in  fact,  "Junior 
Patriarchs,"  under  the  same  management, 
and  were  to  be  cherished  and  nourished 
by  the  same  organization.  They  were 
given  at  first  in  six  private  houses.  The 
first  was  held  at  Mr.  William  Butler 
Duncan's ;  the  second  at  Mr.  Ward  Mc- 
Allister's ;  the  third  at  Mr,  De  Lancey 
Kane's;  the  fourth  at  Mr.  William  Astor's ; 
the  fifth  at  Mr.  George  Henry  Warren's, 
and  the  sixth  at  Mr,  Lewis  Colford  Jones's. 
I  gave  mine  in  my  house  in  West  Nine- 
teenth Street,  and  then  saw  what  it  was 
to  turn  a  house  inside  out  for  a  ball,  and 
how  contracted  everything  must  neces- 
sarily be  in  a  twenty-five  foot  house,  to 
receive  guests  in  it,  give  them  a  salle 
de  danse  and  a  supper  room,  and  then 
concluded  that  we  must  oo  in  most  cases 
to  a  good-sized  ball-room  to  give  an  enjoy- 
able dance. 

From  the  first,  these  dances  were  very 
popular.    They  gave  the  Patriarch  balls 


A  GOLDEN^  AGE  OF  FEASTING. 

I  


227 


the  relief  they  required,  and  were  rapidly 
growing  in  favor  and  threatened  in  the  end 
to  become  formidable  rivals  of  the  Patri- 
archs. The  same  pains  were  taken  in 
getting  them  up,  as  were  given  to  the 
Patriarchs.  We  had  them  but  for  one 
season  in  private  houses,  and  then  gave 
them  at  Dodworth's,  now  Delmonico's. 
Later  on,  w^hen  this  house  changed  hands 
and  became  Delmonico's,  we  gave  them  all 
there,  with  the  exception  of  one  w'inter 
wdie'n  we  gave  them  in  the  foyers  of  the 
Metropolitan  Opera  House.  We  made 
the  subscription  to  them  an  individual 
subscription,  each  lady  and  gentleman 
subscribing  $12.00  for  the  three  balls. 
One  of  them  at  Delmonico's  we  made 
a  "  Mother  Goose  "  Ball.  It  was  a  spe- 
cies of  fancy  dress  ball,  powdered  hair 
being  de  riguciir  for  all  ladies  wdio  did 
not  wear  fancy  costumes,  and  the  feature 
of  the  occasion  was  the  "  Mother  Goose  " 
Quadrille,  which  had  been  planned  and 
prepared  with  much  skill  and  taste.  This 


228 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


Quadrille  was  made  up  of  sixteen  couples 
and  was  danced  at  eleven  o'clock.  As 
those  who  danced  in  it  passed  you  as 
they  marched  from  the  hall  into  the  ball- 
room, }-ou  found  it  a  beautiful  sight  truly. 
Many  of  the  men  wore  pink.  Some  of 
the  characters  were  droll  indeed.  Amonof 
others,  "  Tom,  Tom,  the  Piper's  son,"  with 
his  traditional  pig;  "A  man  in  the  moon, 
who  had  come  down  too  soon  ";  one  lady  as 
"  Twinkle,  twinkle,  little  star  ";  "  Mother 
Hubl^ard,"  in  an  artistic  costume  of  scar- 
let chintz  ;  "  Mary,  Mary,  quite  contrary  "; 
"  Little  Bo-Peep,"  "  The  Maid  in  the  gar- 
den hanging  out  the  clothes,"  "  Punch  and 
Judy";  "Oranges  and  Lemons";  while 
M.  de  Talleyrand  appeared  as  a  inignon 
of  Henry  the  Second.  "Mother  Goose" 
herself  was  also  there.  The  feature  of  the 
evening  was  the  singing  of  the  nursery 
rhymes.  The  second  was  the  "  Pinafore  " 
Quadrille  introducing  the  music  of  that 
operetta.  All  the  men  who  danced  in  it 
were  in  sailor's  dress.     Then  followed  a 


A  GOLDEN  AGE  OF  FEASTING:  229 


Hunting  Quadrille,  in  which  every  man 
wore  a  scarlet  coat. 

I  little  knew  what  I  was  undertaking 
when  I  started  these  F.  C.  D.  C.  Balls. 
From  the  giving  of  the  first  of  these 
dances,  out  of  a  private  house,  to  the  time 
of  my  giving  them  up,  I  had  no  peace 
either  at  home  or  abroad.  I  was  assailed 
on  all  sides,  became  in  a  sense  a  diplo- 
mat, committed  myself  to  nothing,  promised 
much  and  performed  as  little  as  possible. 
I  saw  at  once  the  rock  on  which  we  must 
split :  that  the  pressure  would  be  so  great 
to  get  in,  no  one  could  resist  it  ;  that  our 
parties  must  become  too  general,  and  that 
in  the  end  the  smart  set  would  give  up 
o^oinor  to  them.  I  knew  that  when  this 
occurred,  they  were  doomed  ;  but  I  fought 
for  their  existence  manfully,  and  if  I  could 
here  narrate  all  I  went  through  to  keep 
these  small  parties  select,  I  would  fill  a  vol- 
ume. My  mornings  were  given  up  to  be- 
ing interviewed  of  and  about  them  ;  mothers 
would  call  at  my  house,  entirely  unknown 


230         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


to  me,  the  sole  words  of  introduction  being, 
"  Kind  sir,  I  have  a  daughter."  These 
words  were  cabalistic  ;  I  would  spring  up, 
bow  to  the  ground,  and  reply  :  "  My  dear 
madam,  say  no  more,  you  have  my  sym- 
pathy ;  we  are  in  accord  ;  no  introduction 
is  necessary ;  you  have  a  daughter,  and 
want  her  to  2^0  to  the  F.  C.  D.  C's.  I 

«_> 

will  do  all  in  my  power  to  accomplish  this 
for  you  ;  but  my  dear  lady,  please  under- 
stand, that  in  all  matters  concerning  these 
little  dances  I  must  consult  the  powers 
that  be.  I  am  their  humble  servant ;  I 
must  take  orders  from  them."  All  of 
which  was  a  figure  of  speech  on  my  part. 
"  May  I  ask  if  you  know  any  one  in  this 
great  city,  and  whom  do  you  know  ?  for 
to  propitiate  the  powers  that  be,  I  must  be 
able  to  give  them  some  account  of  your 
daughter."  This  was  enough  to  set  my 
fair  visitor  off.  The  family  always  went 
back  to  King  John,  and  in  some  instances 
to  William  the  Conqueror.  "  My  dear 
madam,"  I  would  reply,  "  does  it  not  sat- 


A  GOLDEN  AGE  OF  FEASTING. 


231 


isfy  any  one  to  come  into  existence  with 
the  birth  of  one's  country?  In  ni)-  opin- 
ion, four  Q;enerations  of  grentlemen  make 
as  o^ood  and  true  a  oentleman  as  forty.  I 
know  my  EngHsh  brethren  will  not  agree 
with  me  in  this,  but,  in  spite  of  them,  it  is 
my  belief."  With  disdain,  m\'  fair  visitor 
would  reply,  "You  are  easily  satisfied,  sir." 
And  so  on,  from  da\'  to  day,  these  inter- 
views would  cro  on  ;  all  were  Hucruenots, 
Pilgrims,  or  Puritans.  I  would  sometimes 
call  one  a  Pilgrim  in  place  of  a  Puritan, 
and  by  this  would  uncork  the  vials  of 
wrath.  If  they  had  ever  lived  south  of 
.Mason  and  Dixon's  line,  their  ancestor  was 
always  a  near  relative  of  Washington,  or  a 
Fairfax,  or  of  the  "  first  families  of  \'ir- 
ginia."  Others  were  more  frank,  and 
claimed  no  ancestry,  but  simply  wished  to 
know  "  how  tlie  thing  was  to  be  done." 
When  our  list  was  full,  all  comers  were 
told  this,  but  this  did  not  stop  them.  I 
was  then  daily  solicited  and  prayed  to  give  • 
them  the  first  vacancy.     I  did  the  best  in 


232         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


my  power,  found  out  who  people  were,  and 
if  it  was  possible  asked  them  to  join. 

The  little  dances  were  most  successful. 
Year  by  year  they  improved.  They  were 
handsomer  each  season.  We  were  not  con- 
tent with  the  small  buffet  in  the  upper  ball- 
room at  Delmonico's,  but  supped,  as  did 
the  Patriarchs,  in  the  large  room  on  Fifth 
Avenue  and  Twenty-sixth  Street,  and  liter- 
ally had  equally  as  good  suppers,  leaving 
out  terrapin  and  canvasback.  But  when 
the  ladies  organized  Assembly  Balls,  we 
then  thought  that  there  would  perhaps  be 
too  many  subscription  balls,  and  the  F.  C. 
D.  C.  was  given  up. 

At  this  time,  when  the  F.  C.  D.  C.'s 
were  in  hio-h  favor,  I  received  the  follow- 
ing  amusing  anonymous  lines  of  and  about 
them  : 

He  does  not  reign  in  Russia  cold. 

Nor  yet  in  far  Cathay, 
But  o'er  this  town  he's  come  to  hold 

An  undisputed  sway. 

When  in  their  might  the  ladies  rose, 
"  To  put  the  Despot  down," 


A  GOLDEN'  AGE  OF  FEASTING.  233 


As  blandly  as  Ah  Sin,  he  goes 
His  way  without  a  frown. 

Alas !  though  he's  but  one  alone, 

He's  one  too  many  still  — 
He's  fought  the  fight,  he's  held  his  own, 

And  to  the  end  he  will. 
— From  (I  Lady  after  the  Ball  f/"  25M  February,  1884. 

Just  at  this  time  a  man  of  wealth,  who 
had  accumulated  a  fortune  here,  resolved 
to  give  New  Yorkers  a  sensation  ;  to  give 
them  a  banquet  which  should  exceed  in 
luxury  and  expense  anything  before  seen  in 
this  country.  As  he  expressed  it,  "  I  knew 
it  would  be  a  folly,  a  piece  of  unheard-of 
extravasfance,  but  as  the  United  States 
Government  had  just  refunded  me  $10,000, 
exacted  from  me  for  duties  upon  importa- 
tions (which,  being  excessive,  I  had  peti- 
tioned to  be  returned  me,  and  had  quite 
unexpectedly  received  this  sum  back),  I 
resolved  to  appropriate  it  to  giving  a 
banquet  that  would  always  be  remem- 
bered." Accordingly,  he  went  to  Charles 
Delmonico,  who  in  turn  went  to  his 
cuisine  classiqne  to  see  how    they  could 


234 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


possibly  spend  this  sum  on  this  feast.  Suc- 
cess crowned  their  efforts.  The  sum  in 
such  skillful  hands  soon  melted  away,  and 
a  banquet  was  given  of  such  beauty  and 
magnificence,  that  even  New  Yorkers,  ac- 
customed as  they  were  to  every  species 
of  novel  expenditure,  were  astonished  at  its 
lavishness,  its  luxury.  The  banquet  was 
given  at  Delmonico's,  in  Fourteenth  Street. 
There  were  seventy-two  guests  in  the  large 
ball-room,  looking  on  Fifth  Avenue.  The 
table  covered  the  whole  length  and  breadth 
of  the  room,  only  leaving  a  passageway  for 
the  waiters  to  pass  around  it.  It  was  a 
long  extended  oval  table,  and  every  inch  of 
it  was  covered  with  flowers,  excepting  a 
space  in  the  centre,  left  for  a  lake,  and 
a  border  around  the  table  for  the  plates. 
This  lake  was  indeed  a  work  of  art ;  it  was 
an  oval  pond,  thirty  feet  in  length,  by 
nearly  the  width  of  the  table,  inclosed  by 
a  delicate  golden  wire  network,  reaching 
from  table  to  ceiling,  making  the  whole  one 
grand  cage ;    four  superb  swans,  brought 


A  GOLDEN  AGE  OF  FEASTING.  235 


from  Prospect  Park,  swam  in  it,  surrounded 
by  high  banks  of  flowers  of  every  species 
and  variety,  Avhich  prevented  them  from 
sphishing  the  water  on  the  table.  There 
were  hills  and  dales  ;  the  modest  little  vio- 
let carpeting  the  valleys,  and  other  bolder 
sorts  climbing  up  and  covering  the  tops 
of  those  miniature  mountains.  Then,  all 
around  the  inclosure,  and  in  fact  above  the 
entire  table,  hunor  little  sfolden  caches,  with 
fine  songsters,  who  filled  the  room  with 
their  melody,  occasionally  interrupted  by 
the  splashing  of  the  waters  of  the  lake  by 
the  swans,  and  the  cooing  of  these  noble 
birds,  and  at  one  time  by  a  fierce  combat 
between  these  stately,  graceful,  gliding- 
white  creatures.  The  surface  of  the  whole 
table,  by  clever  art,  was  one  unbroken 
series  of  undulations,  rising  and  falling  like 
the  billows  of  the  sea,  but  all  clothed  and 
carpeted  with  every  form  of  blossom.  It 
seemed  like  the  abode  of  fairies ;  and 
when  surrounding  this  fairyland  with  lovely 
young  American  womanhood,  )  ou  had  in- 


236  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


deed  an  unequaled  scene  of  enchantment. 
But  this  was  not  to  be  alone  a  feast  for  the 
eye  ;  all  that  art  could  do,  all  that  the 
cleverest  men  could  devise  to  spread  before 
the  guests,  such  a  feast  as  the  gods  should 
enjoy,  was  done,  and  so  well  done  that  all 
present  felt,  in  the  way  of  feasting,  that 
man  could  do  no  more  !  The  wines  were 
perfect.  Blue  seal  Johannisberg  flowed 
like  water.  Incomparable  '48  claret,  superb 
Burgundies,  and  amber-colored  Madeira, 
all  were  there  to  add  to  the  intoxicating 
delight  of  the  scene.  Then,  soft  music 
stole  over  one's  senses ;  lovely  women's 
eyes  sparkled  with  delight  at  the  beauty  of 
their  surroundings,  and  I  felt  that  the  fair 
beinsf  who  sat  next  to  me  would  have 
graced  Alexander's  feast 

"  Sitting  by  my  side, 
Like  a  lovely  Eastern  bride, 
In  flower  of  youth  and  beauty's  pride." 


ENTERING  SOCIETY. 


237 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


Hcnu  to  iritroduce  a  youvg  Girl  into  Society  —  /  make  the 
Daughter  of  a  Relative  a  reigning  Belle  —  First  Of- 
fers of  Marriage  generally  the  Best —  Wives  should 
flirt  with  their  Husbands  —  Hciv  to  be  fashionable 
—  "  Nobs  "  and  "  Swells  "  —  The  Prince  of  Wales's 
Aphorism  —  The  value  of  a  pleasant  Manner  — 
How  a  Gentleman  should  dress  —  I  might  have 
made  a  Fortune  —  Commodore  Vanderbilt  gives  me 
a  straight  "  Tip." 

I  WOULD  now  make  some  suggestions 
as  to  the  proper  way  of  introducing  a 
young  girl  into  New  York  society,  par- 
ticularly if  she  is  not  well  supported  by 
an  old  family  connection.  It  is  cruel  to 
take  a  girl  to  a  ball  where  she  knows  no 
one, 

"  And  to  subject  her  to 
The  fashionable  stare  of  twenty  score 
Of  well-bred  persons,  called  the  world.'  " 

Had  I  charged  a  fee  for  every  consulta- 
tion with  anxious  mothers  on  this  subject, 
I  would  be  a  rich  man.  I  well  remember  a 
near  relative  of  mine  once  writin^r  me  from 

230 


240         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOL'XD  IT. 


Paris,  as  follows  :  "  I  consign  my  wife  and 
daughter  to  your  care.  They  will  spend 
the  winter  in  New  York ;  at  once  s:ive 
them  a  ball  at  Delmonico's,  and  draw  on 
me  for  the  outlay."  I  replied.  "  My  dear 
fellow,  how  many  people  do  you  know  in 
this  city  whom  you  could  invite  to  a  ball  ? 
The  funds  you  send  me  will  be  used,  but 
not  in  griving  a  ball."  The  girl  beinor  a 
beauty,  all  the  rest  was  easy  enough.  I 
gave  her  theatre  party  after  theatre  party, 
followed  by  charming  little  suppers,  asked 
to  them  the  jcuiicssc  dorcc  of  the  day ; 
took  her  repeatedly  to  the  opera,  and  saw 
that  she  was  there  always  surrounded  by 
admirers  :  incessantly  talked  of  her  fascina- 
tions ;  assured  mv  vouno^  friends  that  she 
was  endowed  with  a  fortune  equal  to  the 
mines  of  Ophir.  that  she  danced  like  a 
dream,  and  possessed  all  the  graces,  a 
sunbeam  across  one's  path ;  then  saw  to 
it  that  she  had  a  prominent  place  in  ever} 
cotillion,  and  a  fitting  partner :  showed  her 
whom  to  smile   upon,  and  on  whom  to 


EA'TERIXG  SOCIETY. 


241 


frown  ;  gave  her  the  entree  to  all  the  nice 
houses  ;  criticised  severely  her  toilet  until 
it  became  perfect;  daily  met  her  on  the 
Avenue  with  the  most  charming  man  in 
town,  who  by  one  pretext  or  another  I 
turned  over  to  her ;  made  her  the  constant 
subject  of  conversation  ;  insisted  upon  it 
that  she  was  to  be  the  belle  of  the  com- 
ing winter;  advised  her  parents  that  she 
should  have  her  first  season  at  Bar  Har- 
bor, where  she  could  learn  to  flirt  to  her 
heart's  content,  and  vie  with  other  sfirls. 
Her  second  summer,  when  she  was  older, 
I  suggested  her  passing  at  Newport,  where 
she  should  have  a  pair  of  ponies,  a  pretty 
trap,  with  a  well-gotten-up  groom,  and 
Worth  to  dress  her.  Here  I  hinted  that 
much  must  depend  on  her  father's  purse, 
as  to  her  wardrobe.  As  a  friend  of  mine 
once  said  to  me,  "Your  pace  is  charm- 
ing, but  can  you  keep  it  up?"  I  also 
advised  keeping  the  young  girl  well  in 
hand  and  not  letting  her  grive  offense  to 
the  powers  that  be ;  to  see  to  it  that  she 


242         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


was  not  the  first  to  arrive  and  the  last  to 
leave  a  ball,  and  further,  that  nothing  was 
more  winning  in  a  girl  than  a  pleasant 
bow  and  a  gracious  smile  given  to  either 
young  or  old.  The  fashion  now  for 
women  is  to  hold  themselves  erect.  The 
modern  manner  of  shaking  hands  I  do 
not  like,  but  yet  it  is  adopted.  Being 
interested  in  the  girl's  success,  I  further 
impressed  upon  her  the  importance  of 
making  herself  agreeable  to  older  people, 
remembering  that  much  of  her  enjoyment 
would  be  derived  from  them.  If  asked 
to  dance  a  cotillion,  let  it  be  conditional 
that  no  bouquet  be  sent  her  ;  to  be  cau- 
tious how  she  refused  the  first  offers  of 
marriage  made  her,  as  they  were  generally 
the  best. 

A  word,  just  here,  to  the  newly  married. 
It  works  well  to  have  the  man  more  in 
love  with  you  than  you  are  with  him.  My 
advice  to  all  young  married  women  is  to 
keep  up  flirting  with  their  husbands  as 
much  after  marriage  as  before  ;   to  make 


ENTERING  SOCIE  T  V. 


243 


themselves  as  attractive  to  their  husbands 
after  their  marriage  as  they  were  when 
they  captivated  them  ;  not  to  neglect  their 
toilet,  but  rather  improve  it ;  to  be  as  co- 
quettish and  coy  after  they  are  bound  to- 
o^ether  as  before,  when  no  ties  held  them. 
The  more  they  are  appreciated  by  the 
world,  the  more  will  their  husbands  value 
them.  In  fashionable  life,  conspicuous 
jealousy  is  a  mistake.  A  woman  is  bound 
to  take  and  hold  a  high  social  position. 
In  this  wav  she  advances  and  streno^thens 
her  husband.  How  many  women  we  see 
who  have  benefited  their  husbands,  and 
secured  for  them  these  advantaofes. 

A  young  girl  should  be  treated  like 
a  bride  when  she  makes  her  dclnU  into 
society.  Her  relatives  should  rally  around 
her  and  Q^ive  her  entertainments  to  wel- 
come  her  into  the  world  which  she  is  to 
adorn.  It  is  in  excessive  bad  taste  for 
such  relatives  to  in  any  way  refer  to  the 
cost  of  these  dinners,  balls,  etc.  Ever)'  one 
in  society  knows    how  to   estimate  such 


244         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


things.  Again,  at  such  dinners,  it  is  not 
in  good  taste  to  load  your  table  with 
bonhonnieres  and  other  articles  intended 
to  be  taken  away  by  your  guests.  This 
reminds  me  of  a  dear  old  lady,  who,  when 
I  dined  with  her,  always  insisted  on  my 
putting  in  my  dress  coat  pocket  a  large 
hothouse  peach,  which  never  reached  home 
in  a  perfect  state. 

The  launching  of  a  beautiful  young  girl 
into  society  is  one  thing;  it  is  another  to 
place  her  family  on  a  good,  sound  social 
footiuCT-.    You  can  launch  them  into  the 

o 

social  sea,  but  can  they  float  ?  "  Manners 
maketh  man,"  is  an  old  proverb.  These 
they  certainly  must  possess.  There  is  no 
society  in  the  world  as  generous  as  New 
York  society  is  ;  "  friend,  parent,  neighbor, 
all  it  will  embrace,"  but  once  embraced 
they  must  have  the  power  of  sustaining 
themselves.  The  best  quality  for  them 
to  possess  is  modesty  in  asserting  their 
claims  ;  letting  people  seek  them  rather 
than  attempting  to   rush  too  quickly  to 


ENTERIXG  SOCIETY. 


245 


the  front.  The  Prince  of  Wales,  on  a 
charming  American  young  woman  express- 
ing her  surprise  at  the  cordial  reception 
given  her  by  London  societ)',  replied,  "  My 
dear  lady,  there  are  certain  people  who 
are  bound  to  come  to  the  front  and  stay 
there;  you  are  one  of  them."  It  requires 
not  only  money,  but  brains,  and,  above 
all,  infinite  tact  ;  possessing  the  three,  your 
success  is  assured.  If  taken  by  the  hand 
by  a  person  in  society  you  are  at  once  led 
into  the  charmed  circle,  and  then  your 
own  correct  perceptions  of  what  should  or 
should  not  be  done  must  do  the  rest.  As 
a  philosophical  friend  once  said  to  me,  "  A 
gentleman  can  always  walk,  but  he  can- 
not afford  to  have  a  shabby  equipage." 
Another  philosopher  soliloquized  as  fol- 
lows :  "  The  first  evidence  of  wealth  is 
your  equipage."  By  the  way,  his  defini- 
tion of  aristocracy  in  America  was,  the 
possession  of  hereditary  wealth. 

If  you  want  to  be  fashionable,  be  always 
in  the  company  of  fashionable  people.  As 


246  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


an  old  beau  suggested  to  me,  If  you  see 
a  fossil  of  a  man,  shabbily  dressed,  rely- 
ing- solely  on  his  pedigree,  dating  back  to 
time  immemorial,  who  has  the  aspirations 
of  a  duke  and  the  fortunes  of  a  footman, 
do  not  cut  him  ;  it  is  better  to  cross  the 
street  and  avoid  meeting  him.  It  is  well  to 
be  in  with  the  nobs  who  are  born  to  their 
position,  but  the  support  of  the  swells  is 
more  advantageous,  for  society  is  sustained 
and  carried  on  by  the  swells,  the  nobs  look- 
ing quietly  on  and  accepting  the  position, 
feeling  they  are  there  by  divine  right ; 
but  they  do  not  make  fashionable  society, 
or  carry  it  on.  A  nob  can  be  a  swell  if 
he  chooses,  i.e.  if  he  will  spend  the 
money;  but  for  his  social  existence  this 
is  unnecessary.  A  nob  is  like  a  poet, — 
nascitiir  non  fit ;  not  so  a  swell, — he 
creates  himself. 

The  value  of  a  pleasant  manner  it  is 
impossible  to  estimate.  It  is  like  sunshine, 
it  gladdens ;  you  feel  it  and  are  at  once 
attracted  to  the  person  without  knowing 


ENTERING  SOCIETY. 


247 


why.  When  you  entertain,  do  it  in  an 
easy,  natural  way,  as  if  it  was  an  everyday 
occurrence,  not  the  event  of  your  life  ;  but 
do  it  well.  Learn  how  to  do  it  ;  never  be 
ashamed  to  learn.  The  American  people 
have  a  greater  power  of  "  catching  hold," 
and  adapting  themselves  to  new  surround- 
ings than  any  other  people  in  the  world. 
A  distinguished  diplomatist  once  said  to 
me,  "  The  best  wife  for  a  Diplomat  is  an 
American  ;  for  take  her  to  any  quarter  of 
the  globe  and  she  adapts  herself  to  the 
place  and  people." 

If  women  should  cultivate  pleasant  man- 
ners, should  not  men  do  the  same  ?  Are 
not  manners  as  important  to  men  as  to 
women  ?  The  word  "  gentleman "  may 
have  its  derivation  from  gentle  descent,  but 
my  understanding  of  a  gentleman  has  al- 
ways been  that  he  is  a  person  free  from 
arrogance,  and  anything  like  self-assertion  ; 
considerate  of  the  feelings  of  others  ;  so 
satisfied  and  secure  in  his  own  position, 
that  he  is  always  unpretentious,  feeling  he 


248         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


could  not  do  an  ungentlemanly  act;  as 
courteous  and  kind  in  manner  to  his  in- 
feriors as  to  his  equals.  The  best  bred 
men  I  have  ever  met  have  always  been 
the  least  pretentious.  Natural  and  simple 
in  manner,  modest  in  apparel,  never  wear- 
ing anything  too  voyant,  or  conspicuous  ; 
but  always  so  well  dressed  that  you  could 
never  discover  what  made  them  so, — the 
good,  quiet  taste  of  the  whole  producing 
the  result. 

Here,  all  men  are  more  or  less  in  busi- 
ness. We  hardly  have  a  class  who  are 
not.  They  are,  of  necessity,  daily  brought 
in  contact  with  all  sorts  and  conditions  of 
men,  and  in  self-defense  oftentimes  have 
to  acquire  and  adopt  an  abrupt,  a  brusque 
manner  of  address,  which,  as  a  rule,  they 
generally  leave  in  their  offices  when  they 
quit  them.  If  they  do  not,  they  certainly 
should.  When  such  rouoh  manners  be- 
come  by  practice  a  second  nature,  they  un- 
fit one  to  go  into  society.  It  pays  well  for 
young  and  old  to  cultivate  politeness  and 


EXTERIXG  SOCIETY. 


courtesy.  Nothing  is  gained  by  trying 
roughly  to  elbow  yourself  into  society, 
and  push  your  way  through  into  the 
inner  circle;  for  when  such  a  one  has 
reached  it,  he  will  find  its  atmosphere  un- 
congenial and  be  only  too  glad  to  escape 
from  it. 

A  short  time  ago,  a  handsome,  well- 
dressed  Englishman,  well  up  in  all  matters 
pertaining  to  society,  went  with  me  to 
my  tailor  to  see  me  try  on  a  dress  coat.  I 
was  struck  with  his  criticisms.  Standing 
before  a  glass,  he  said,  "  You  must  never 
be  able  to  see  the  tails  of  your  dress  coat  ; 
if  you  do,  discard  the  coat."  Again,  he 
advised  one's  always  wearing  a  hat  that 
was  the  fashion,  losincj  sifjht  of  the  becom- 
insj,  but  alwavs  followingr  the  fashion.  "At 
a  glance,"  he  said,  "  I  can  tell  a  man 
from  the  provinces,  simply  by  his  hat." 
If  you  are  stout,  never  wear  a  white  waist- 
coat, or  a  conspicuous  watch-chain.  Never 
call  attention  by  them  to  what  you 
should  try  to  conceal.     In  going  to  the 


250  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  EOUXD  IT. 


opera,  if  you  go  to  an  opera  box  with 
ladies,  you  should  wear  white  or  light 
French  gray  gloves.  Otherwise,  gloves 
are  not  worn.  A  boiitoiinicrc  of  white 
hyacinths  or  white  pinks  on  dress  coats 
is  much  worn,  both  to  balls  and  the  opera. 
My  English  friend  was  very  much  struck 
with  the  fact  that  American  women  all 
sat  on  the  left  side  of  the  carriao;-e.  the 
opposite  side  from  what  they  do  in  Eng- 
land. "  Ladies,"  he  said,  "  should  always 
sit  behind  their  coachman,  but  the  desire 
to  see  and  be  seen  prompts  them  here 
to  take  the  other  side.  In  this. city  some 
half  a  dozen  ladies  show  their  knowl- 
edge of  conventionalities  and  take  the 
proper  seat." 

I  think  the  great  secret  of  life  is  to  be 
contented  with  the  position  to  which  it  has 
pleased  God  to  call  you.  Living  myself  in 
a  modest,  though  comfortable  little  house 
in  Twenty-first  Street  in  this  city,  a  Wall 
Street  banker  honored  me  v/ith  a  visit, 
and  exclaimed  against  my  surroundings. 


ENTERING  SOCIETY. 


"  What  !  "  said  he,  "  are  you  contented 
to  Hve  in  this  modest  httle  house  ?  Why, 
man,  this  will  never  do  !  The  first  thing 
you  must  have  is  a  fine  house.  I  will  see 
that  you  get  it.  All  that  you  have  to  do 
is  to  let  me  buy  ten  thousand  shares  of 
stock  for  you  at  the  opening  of  the  Board  ; 
by  three  I  can  sell  it,  and  I  will  then  send 
you  a  check  for  the  profit  of  the  transac- 
tion, which  will  not  be  less  than  ten  thou- 
sand dollars  !  Do  it  for  you  ?  Of  course 
1  will,  with  pleasure.  You  will  run  no 
risk  ;  if  there  is  a  loss  I  will  bear  it." 

I  thanked  my  friend,  assured  him  I  was 
wholly  and  absolutely  contented,  and  must 
respectfully  decline  his  offer,  A  similar 
offer  was  made  to  me  by  my  old  friend, 
Commodore  Vanderbilt,  in  his  house  in 
Washington  Place,  I  was  a  great  admirer 
of  this  grand  old  man,  and  he  was  very 
fond  of  me.  He  had  taken  me  over  his 
stables,  and  was  then  showing  me  his  par- 
lors and  statuary,  and  kept  all  the  time 
callino;"  me  "his  boy."    I   turned  to  him 


252         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


and  said,  "  Commodore,  you  will  be  as 
great  a  railroad  king,  as  you  were  once 
an  ocean  king,  and  as  you  call  me  your 
boy,  why  don't  you  make  my  fortune?" 
He  thought  a  moment,  and  then  said, 
slapping  me  on  the  back,  "  Mc,  sell 
everything  you  have  and  put  it  in  Har- 
lem stock;  it  is  now  twenty-four;  you  will 
make  more  money  than  you  will  know 
how  to  take  care  of."  If  I  had  followed 
his  advice,  I  would  now  have  been  indeed 
a  millionaire. 

One  word  more  here  about  the  Com- 
modore. He  then  turned  to  me  and  said, 
"  Mc,  look  at  that  bust," — a  bust  of  him- 
self, by  Powers.  "  What  do  you  think 
Powers  said  of  that  head  ? " 

"What  did  he  say?"   I  replied. 

"  He  said,  '  It  is  a  finer  head  than 
Webster's  ! ' " 


ENTERTAINING 


253 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


Success  in  Entertaining —  The  Art  of  Dinner-giving  — 
Selection  of  Guests  —  A  happy  Mixture  of  Voung 
Wometi  and  Dowagers —  The  latter  more  Apprecia- 
tive of  the  Good  Things  —  Interviewing  the  Chef — 
"Uncle  Sam"  Ward's  Plan  —  Mock  Turtle  Soup  a 
Delusion  and  a  Snare  —  The  Two  Styles  of  cooking 
Terrapin  —  Grasshopper-fed  Turkeys —  Sottrbet  should 
not  be  flavored  with  Rum  —  Nesselrode  the  best  of  all 
the  Ices. 


"  We  may  live  without  love, — what  is  passion  but  pining  ? 
But  where  is  the  man  who  can  live  without  dining  ? " — 

Owen  Meredith. 

The  first  object  to  be  aimed  at  is  to 
make  your  dinners  so  charming  and  agree- 
able that  invitations  to  them  are  eagerly 
sought  for,  and  to  let  all  feel  that  it  is  a 
great  privilege  to  dine  at  your  house, 
where  they  are  sure  they  will  meet  only 
those  whom  they  wish  to  meet.  You  can- 
not instruct  people  by  a  book  how  to  en- 
tertain, though  Aristotle  is  said  to  have 
applied  his  talents  to  a  compilation  of  a 
code  of  laws  for  the  table.  Success  in 
255 


256  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


entertaining  is  accomplished  by  magnetism 
and  tact,  which  combined  constitute  social 
genius.  It  is  the  ladder  to  social  success. 
If  successfully  done,  it  naturally  creates 
jealousy.  I  have  known  a  family  who  for 
years  outdid  every  one  in  giving  exquisite 
dinners  —  (this  was  when  this  city  was  a 
small  community)  —  driven  to  Europe  and 
passing  the  rest  of  their  days  there  on  find- 
ing a  neighbor  outdoing  them.  I  myself 
once  lost  a  charming  friend  by  giving  a 
better  soup  than  he  did.  His  wife  rushed 
home  from  my  house,  and  in  despair, 
throwing  up  her  hands  to  her  husband, 
exclaimed,  "  Oh  !  what  a  soup  !  "  I  re- 
lated this  to  my  cousin,  the  distinguished 
gourmet,  who  laughingly  said  :  "  Why  did 
you  not  at  once  invite  them  to  pork  and 
beans  ?  " 

The  hio^hest  cultivation  in  social  man- 
ners  enables  a  person  to  conceal  from 
the  world  his  real  feelings.  He  can  go 
through  any  annoyance  as  if  it  were  a 
pleasure  ;  go  to  a  rival's  house  as  if  to  a 


Jl 


ENTERTAINING.  257 

dear  friend's  ;  "  Smile  and  smile,  yet  mur- 
der while  he  smiles."  A  great  compli- 
ment once  paid  me  in  Newport  was  the 
speech  of  an  old  public  waiter,  who  had 
grow^n  gray  in  the  service,  when  to  a  con- 
frere he  exclaimed  :  "  In  this  house,  my 
friend,  you  meet  none  but  quality." 

In  planning  a  dinner  the  question  is  not 
to  whom  )'Ou  owe  dinners,  but  who  is  most 
desirable.  The  success  of  the  dinner 
depends  as  much  upon  the  company  as  the 
cook.  Discordant  elements  —  people  in- 
vited alphabetically,  or  to  pay  off  debts  — 
are  fatal.  Of  course,  I  speak  of  ladies' 
dinners.  And  here,  great  tact  must  be 
used  in  bringing  together  young  woman- 
hood and  the  dowagers.  A  dinner  wholly 
made  up  of  young  people  is  generally 
stupid.  You  require  the  experienced 
woman  of  the  world,  who  has  at  her  fin- 
gers' ends  the  history  of  past,  present,  and 
future.  Critical,  scandalous,  with  keen  and 
ready  wit,  appreciating  the  dinner  and 
wine  at  their  worth.     Ladies  in  beautiful 


25 3  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


toilets  are  necessary  to  the  elegance  of 
a  dinner,  as  a  most  exquisitely  arranged 
table  is  only  a  solemn  affair  surrounded 
by  black  coats.  I  make  it  a  rule  never  to 
attend  such  dismal  feasts,  listening  to  pre- 
pared witticisms  and  "  twice-told  tales." 
So  much  for  your  guests. 

The  next  step  is  an  interview  with  your 
chef,  if  you  have  one,  or  cordon  bleu,  whom 
you  must  arouse  to  fever  heat  by  work- 
ing on  his  ambition  and  vanity.  You 
must  impress  upon  him  that  this  particu- 
lar dinner  will  give  him  fame  and  lead  to 
fortune.  My  distinguished  cousin,  who  en- 
joyed the  reputation  of  being  one  of  the 
most  finished  gourmets  in  this  countr)', 
when  he  reached  this  point,  would  bury  his 
head  in  his  hands  and  (seemingly  to  the 
chef)  rack  his  brain  seeking  inspiration, 
fearing-  lest  the  fatal  mistake  should  occur 
of  letting  two  white  or  brown  sauces  fol- 
low each  other  in  succession  ;  or  truffles 
appear  twice  in  that  dinner.  The  distress 
that  his  countenance  wore  as  he  repeatedly 


ENTER  TAINING. 


259 


looked  up  at  the  chef,  as  if  for  advice  and 
assistance,  would  have  its  intended  effect 
on  the  culinary  artist,  and  his  brain  would 
at  once  act  in  sympathy. 

The  first  battle  is  over  the  soup,  and 
here  there  is  a  vast  difference  of  opinion. 
In  this  country,  where  our  servants  are 
oftentimes  unskilled,  and  have  a  charming 
habit  of  occasionally  giving  ladies  a  soup 
shower  bath,  I  invariably  discard  two 
soups,  and  insist  to  the  protesting  chef 
that  there  shall  be  but  one.  Of  course,  if 
there  are  two,  the  one  is  light,  the  other 
heavy.  Fortunately  for  the  period  in 
which  we  live,  our  great  French  artists 
have  invented  the  Tortue  claire,  which 
takes  the  place  of  our  forefathers'  Mock 
Turtle  soup,  with  forcemeat  balls,  well 
spiced,  requiring  an  ostrich's  digestion  to 
survive  it.  We  have  this,  then,  as  our 
soup.  The  ^//^  here  exclaims,  "Monsieur 
must  know  that  all  petites  bonchdes  must, 
of  necessity,  be  made  of  chicken."  We 
ask  for  a  novelty,  and   his  great  genius 


26o         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


suggests,  under  pressure,  mousse  aux  jam- 
bon,  which  is  attractive  to  the  eye,  and, 
if  well  made,  at  once  establishes  the  repu- 
tation of  the  artist,  satisfies  the  guests 
that  they  are  in  able  hands,  and  allays 
their  fears  for  their  dinner. 

There  is  but  one  season  of  the  year 
when  salmon  should  be  served  hot  at  a 
choice  repast ;  that  is  in  the  spring  and 
early  summer,  and  even  then  it  is  too 
satisfying,  not  sufficiently  delicate.  The 
man  who  gives  salmon  during  the  winter, 
I  care  not  what  sauce  he  serves  with  it, 
does  an  injury  to  himself  and  his  guests. 
Terrapin  is  with  us  as  national  a  dish  as 
canvasback,  and  at  the  choicest  dinners  is 
often  a  substitute  for  fish.  It  is  a  shell- 
fish, and  an  admirable  change  from  the 
oft  repeated  filet  de  sole  or  filet  dc  bass. 
At  the  South,  terrapin  soup,  with  plenty 
of  eggs  in  it,  was  a  dish  for  the  gods, 
and  a  standard  dinner  party  dish  in  days 
when  a  Charleston  and  Savannah  dinner 
was  an  event  to  live  for.    But  no  French- 


ENTER  TAIXING. 


261 


man  ever  made  this  soup.  It  requires 
the  native  born  culinary  genius  of  the 
African. 

Now  when  we  mention  the  word  ter- 
rapin, we  approach  a  very  delicate  sub- 
ject, involving-  a  rivalry  between  two  great 
cities ;  a  subject  that  has  been  agitated 
for  thirty  years  or  more,  and  is  still  agi- 
tated, i.e.  the  proper  way  of  cooking  ter- 
rapin. The  Baltimoreans  contending  that 
the  black  stew,  the  chafing  dish  system, 
simply  adding  to  the  terrapin  salt,  pep- 
per, and  Madeira,  produce  the  best  dish  ; 
while  the  Philadelphians  contend  that  by 
fresh  butter  and  cream  they  secure  greater 
results.  The  one  is  known  as  the  Balti- 
more black  stew  ;  the  other,  as  the  Tren- 
ton stew,  this  manner  of  cooking  terra- 
pin originating  in  an  old  eating  club  in 
Trenton,  N.  J.  I  must  say  I  agree  with 
the  Philadelphians. 

And  now,  leaving  the  fish,  we  come  to 
the  piece  de  resistance  of  the  dinner,  called 
the  relcv<^.     No  Frenchman  will  ever  will- 


t 


262  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

ingly  cook  a  ladies'  dinner  and  give  any- 
thing coarser  or  heavier  than  a  filet  de 
boeitf.  He  will  do  it,  if  he  has  to,  of 
course,  but  he  will  think  you  a  barbarian 
if  you  order  him  to  do  it.  I  eschew  the 
mifshroom  and  confine  myself  to  the  truffle 
in  the  treatment  of  the  filet.  I  oftentimes 
have  a  filet  a  la  mcelle  de  boeiifi.  or  a  la  jar- 
dinih'e.  In  the  fall  of  the  year,  turkey 
poiLlts  a  la  Bordelaise,  or  a  la  Toulouse,  or 
a  saddle  of  Southdown  mutton  or  lamb, 
are  a  good  substitute.  Let  me  here  say 
that  the  American  turkey,  as  found  on 
Newport  Island,  all  its  feathers  being  jet 
black  and  its  diet  grasshoppers,  is  excep- 
tionally fine. 

Now  for  the  entrdes.  In  a  dinner  of 
twelve  or  fourteen,  one  or  two  hot  entrees 
and  one  cold  is  sufficient.  If  you  use  the 
truffle  with  the  filet,  making  a  black  sauce, 
you  must  follow  it  with  a  white  sauce,  as 
a  riz  de  veau  a  la  Toiiloitse,  or  a  siipreuie 
de  volaille  ;  then  a  e/iaud-frold,  say  of  pdtd 
de  foie  gras   en    Belleviie,  which  simply 


EN  TER  TA INING. 


263 


means  pdt^  de  foie  gras  incased  in  jelly. 
Then  a  hot  vegetable,  as  artichokes,  sauce 
Barigoiilc,  or  Italiciinc,  or  asparagus,  sauce 
Hollandaise.  Then  your  sorbet,  known  in 
France  as  la  sjirprise,  as  it  is  an  ice,  and 
produces  on  the  mind  the  effect  that  the 
dinner  is  finished,  when  the  grandest  dish 
of  the  dinner  makes  its  appearance  in  the 
shape  of  the  roast  canvasbacks,  woodcock, 
snipe,  or  truffled  capons,  with  salad. 

I  must  be  permitted  a  few  words  of 
and  about  this  sorbet.  It  should  never  be 
flavored  with  rum.  A  true  Parisian  sorbet 
is  simply  pimcJi  a  la  Toscane,''  flavored 
with  Maraschino  or  bitter  almonds ;  in 
other  words,  a  homoeopathic  dose  of  prus- 
sic  acid.  Then  the  sorbet  is  a  digestive, 
and  is  intended  as  such.  Granit,  or  water 
ice,  flavored  with  rum,  is  universally  given 
here.  Instead  of  aiding  digestion,  it  im- 
pedes it,  and  may  be  dangerous. 

A  Russian  salad  is  a  pleasing  novelty  at 
times,  and  is  more  attractive  if  it  comes 
in   the  shape  of  a  Macedoine  de  legumes, 


1 


264         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


Camembert  cheese,  with  a  biscuit,  with 
which  you  serve  your  Burgundy,  your  old 
Port,  or  your  Johannisberg,  the  only  place 
in  the  dinner  where  you  can  introduce  this 
latter  wine.  A  genuine  Johannisberg,  I 
may  say  here,  by  way  of  parenthesis,  is 
rare  in  this  country,  for  if  obtained  at  the 
Chateau,  it  is  comparatively  a  dry  wine ;  if 
it  is,  as  I  have  often  seen  it,  still  lusciously 
sweet  after  having  been  here  twenty  years 
or  more,  you  may  be  sure  it  is  not  a  genu- 
ine Chateau  wine. 

The  French  always  give  a  hot  pudding, 
as  pudding  stiedoise,  or  a  crotitc  an  Madcrc, 
or  ananas,  but  I  always  omit  this  dish  to 
shorten  the  dinner.  Then  come  your  ices. 
The  fashion  now  is  to  make  them  very 
ornamental,  a  cornucopia  for  instance,  but 
1  prefer  a  ponding  Nessclrode,  the  best  of 
all  the  ices  if  good  cream  is  used. 


MADEIRAS. 


265 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Madeira  the  King  of  Wines  —  //  took  its  Name  from 
the  Ship  it  came  in  —  Daniel  Webster  and  "  Butler 
l6  "  —  How  Philadelphians  "fine"  their  Wines  — 
A  Southern  Wine  Party  —  An  Expert's  shrewd 
Guess —  77^1?  Newton  Cordons  —  Prejudice  against 
Malmsey  —  Madeira  should  be  kept  in  the  Garret  — 
Some  famous  Brands. 

Having  had  your  champagne  from  the 
fish  to  the  roast,  your  vin  ordinaire 
through  the  dinner,  your  Burgundy  or 
Johannisberg,  or  fine  old  Tokay  (quite 
equal  to  any  Johannisberg),  with  the 
cheese,  your  best  claret  with  the  roast, 
then  after  the  ladies  have  had  their  fruit 
and  have  left  the  table,  comes  on  the 
king  of  wines,  your  Madeira  ;  a  national 
wine,  a  wine  only  well  matured  at  the 
South,  and  a  wine  whose  history  is  as 
old  as  is  that  of  our  country.  I  may 
here  say,  that  Madeira  imparts  a  vitality 
that  no  other  wine  can  give.  After  drink- 
ing it,  it  acts  as  a  soporific,  but  the  next 
267 


268         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


day  you  feel  ten  years  younger  and 
stronger  for  it.  I  have  known  a  man, 
whose  dinners  were  so  famous  by  reason 
of  his  being  always  able  to  give  at  them 
a  faultless  Madeira,  disappear  with  his 
wine.  When  his  wine  gave  out,  he  col- 
lapsed. When  asked,  "Where  is  Mr. 
Jones?"  the  ready  answer  w^as  always 
given,  "He  went  out  with  his  'Rapid' 
Madeira." 

Families  prided  themselves  on  their 
Madeira.  It  became  an  heirloom  (as 
Tokay  now  is,  in  Austria).  Like  the  ele- 
phant, it  seemed  to  live  over  three  score 
years  and  ten.  The  fine  Madeiras  were 
fine  when  they  reached  this  country.  Age 
improved  them,  and  made  them  the  poe- 
try of  wine.  They  became  the  color  of 
amber  and  retained  all  their  orio^inal  flavor. 
But  it  is  an  error  to  suppose  that  age 
ever  improved  a  poor  Madeira.  If  it 
came  here  poor  and  sweet,  it  remained 
poor  and  sweet,  and  never  lost  its  sweet- 
ness, even   at   seventy   or  eighty  years, 


MADEIRAS. 


269 


while  the  famous  Madeiras,  dating  as  far 
back  as  1791,  if  they  have  been  properly 
cared  for,  are  perfect  to  this  day.  W e 
should  value  wine  like  women,  for  ma- 
turity, not  age. 

These  wines  took  their  names  generally 
from  the  ships  in  which  they  came  over. 
There  is  no  more  sensitive  wine  to 
climatic  influences.  A  delicate  Madeira, 
taken  only  a  few  blocks  on  a  cold,  raw 
day,  is  not  fit  to  drink  ;  and  again,  you 
might  as  well  give  a  man  champagne  out 
of  a  horse  bucket,  as  to  give  him  a  Ma- 
deira in  a  thick  sherry  or  claret  glass,  or 
a  heavy  cut  glass.  The  American  pipe- 
stem  is  the  only  glass  in  which  Madeira 
should  be  given,  and  when  thus  given, 
is,  as  one  of  our  distinguished  men  once 
said,  "  The  only  liquid  he  ever  called 
wine."  This  ouofht  to  be  o-iven  as  was 
done  by  the  Father  of  the  Roman  Lucul- 
lus,  who  never  saw  more  than  a  single 
cup  of  the  Phanean  wine  served  at  one 
time  at  his  father's  table. 


270 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


A  friend  of  mine  once  gave  the  pro- 
prietor of  the  Astor  House,  for  cour- 
tesies extended  to  him,  a  dozen  of  his 
finest  Madeira.  He  had  the  curiosity 
years  after  to  ask  his  host  of  the  Astor 
what  became  of  this  wine.  He  replied, 
^Daniel  Webster  came  to  my  house, 
and  I  opened  a  bottle  of  it  for  him,  and 
he  remained  in  the  house  until  he  had 
drunk  up  every  drop  of  it."  This  was 
the  famous  "  Butler  16." 

As  in  painting  there  are  the  Murillo 
and  Correggio  schools,  the  light  ethereal 
conceptions  of  womanhood,  as  against 
the  rich  Titian  colorincr  ■  so  in  Madeira, 
there  is  the  full,  round,  strong,  rich  wine, 
liked  by  some  in  preference  to  the  light, 
delicate,  straw-colored,  rain-water  wines. 
Philadelphians  first  took  to  this  character 
of  wine.  They  judiciously  "  fined  "  their 
wine,  and  produced  simply  a  perfect 
Madeira, — to  be  likened  to  the  best 
Johannisberg,  and  naturally  so,  it  having 
similar  qualities,  as  it  is  well  known  that 


MADEIRAS. 


271 


the  Sercial  Madeira,  the  "  king  pin "  of 
all  Madeiras,  was  raised  from  a  Rhine 
grape  taken  to  the  Island  of  Madeira. 
And  here  let  me  say,  that  "fining,"  by 
using  only  the  white  of  a  perfectly  fresh 
egg  and  Spanish  clay,  is  proper  and 
judicious,  but  milk  is  ruinous.  The  eggs 
in  Spain  are  famous,  and  are  thus  used. 

In  Savannah  and  Charleston,  from  1800 
up  to  our  Civil  War,  afternoon  wine 
parties  were  the  custom.  You  were 
asked  to  come  and  taste  Madeira,  at  5 
P.M.,  after  your  dinner.  The  hour  of  din- 
ing in  these  cities  was  then  always  3  p.m. 
The  mahogany  table,  which  reflected  your 
face,  was  set  with  finger  bowls,  with  four 
pipe-stem  glasses  in  each  bowl,  olives, 
parched  ground  nuts  and  almonds,  and 
half  a  dozen  bottles  of  Madeira.  There 
you  sat,  tasted  and  commented  on  these 
wines  for  an  hour  or  more.  On  one 
occasion,  a  gentleman,  not  having  any 
wine  handy,  mixed  half  "  Catherine 
Banks"  and    half  "Rapid."     On  tasting 


272 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


the  mixture,  a  great  wine  expert  said  if 
he  could  beheve  his  host  capable  of  mix- 
ing a  wine,  he  would  say  it  was  "half 
Catherine  Banks  and  half  Rapid."  This 
was  after  fifteen  men  had  said  they  could 
not  name  the  Madeira. 

A  distinguished  stranger  having  re- 
ceived an  invitation  to  one  of  these  wine 
parties  from  the  British  Consul,  replied, 
"  Thanks,  I  must  decline,  for  where  I 
dine  I  take  my  wine." 

The  oldest  and  largest  shippers  of 
Madeira  were  the  Newton  Gordons,  who 
sent  the  finest  Madeiras  to  Charleston 
and  Savannah.  From  1791  to  1805,  their 
firm  was  Newton  Gordon,  Murdock,  & 
Scott.  One  hundred  and  ten  years  ago, 
they  sent  five  hundred  pipes  of  Madeira 
in  one  shipment  to  Savannah.  These 
wines  sent  there  were  the  finest  Sercials, 
Buals,  and  Malmseys.  All  those  wines 
were  known  as  extra  Madeiras.  The 
highest  priced  wine,  a  Manigult  Hey  ward 
wine,   I    knew  forty  years   ago  ;    it  was 


MADEIRAS. 


273 


ninety  years  old — perfect,  full  flavored, 
and  of  y^ood  color  and  streno^th. 

In  Charleston  and  Savannah  from  1780 
to  1840,  almost  every  gentleman  ordered 
a  pipe  of  wine  from  Madeira.  I  know 
of  a  man  who  has  kept  this  up  for  half 
a  century. 

There  is  a  common  prejudice  against 
Malmsey,  as  being  a  lady's  wine,  and 
sweet  ;  when  very  old,  no  Madeira  can 
beat  it.  I  have  now  in  my  cellar  an 
"All  Saints"  wine,  named  after  the 
famous  Savannah  Ouoit  Club,  imported 
in  1791  ;  a  perfect  wine,  of  exquisite 
flavor.  My  wife's  grandfather  imported 
two  pipes  of  Madeira  every  year,  and  my 
father-in-law  continued  to  do  this  as 
long  as  he  lived.  When  he  died  he 
had,  as  I  am  told,  the  largest  private 
cellar  of  Madeira  in  the  United  States. 
All  his  wines  w^ere  Newton  Gordons. 
He  made  the  fatal  mistake  of  hermeti- 
cally sealing  them  in  glass  gallon  bot- 
tles, with  ground  glass  stoppers,  keeping 


274 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


them  in  his  cellar  ;  keeping  them  from 
light  and  air,  preventing  the  wine  from 
breathing,  as  it  were.  It  has  taken 
years  for  them  to  recover  from  this  treat- 
ment. 

Madeira  should  be  kept  in  the  garret. 
A  piece  of  a  corn  cob  is  often  a  good 
cork  for  it.  Light  and  air  do  not  injure 
it  ;  drawing  it  off  from  its  lees  occasion- 
ally, makes  it  more  delicate,  but,  if  done 
too  often,  the  wine  may  spoil,  as  its  lees 
support  and  nourish  it. 

The  sfreat  New  York  Madeiras,  famous 
Avhen  landed  and  still  famous,  were 
"The  Marsh  and  Benson,  1809,"  "The 
Coles  Madeira,"  "  The  Stuyvesant,"  "  The 
Clark,"  and  "The  Eliza."  In  Philadel- 
phia, "  The  Butler,  16."  In  Boston,  The 
"  Kirby,"  the  "  Amory  1800,"  and  "1811," 
"The  Otis."  In  Baltimore,  "The  Mar- 
shall," the  "Meredith,"  or  "Great  Un- 
known," "  The  Holmes  Demijohn,"  "  The 
Mob,"  "The  Colt."  In  Charleston,  "The 
Rutledge,"  "  The  Hurricane,"  "The  Earth- 


MADEIRAS. 


275 


quake,"  "  The  Maid,"  "  The  Tradd- 
street."  In  Savannah,  "The  All  Saints" 
(1791),  "The  Catherine  Banks,"  "The 
Louisa  Cecilia"  (1818),  "The  Rapid," 
18 1  7,  and  "The  Widow." 


CHAMPAGNES  AND  OTHER 
WINES. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

Br  lit  Champagne — Another  Revolution  in  treatment  of 
this  Wine  —  //  must  be  Old  to  be  good — '74  Cham- 
pagne worth  $8  a  bottle  in  Paris — How  to  frappi 
Champagne — The  best  Clarets — Ei^en  your  Vin  Ordi- 
naire should  be  Decanted — Sherries — Spaniards  drink 
them  from  the  Wood — /  prefer  this  way —  The 
"famous  Forsyth  Sherry" — A  Wine-cellar  ttot  a 
Necessity. 

The  fashionable  world  here  have  ac- 
cepted the  Briit  champagne,  and  avoid  all 
other  kinds;  ladies  even  more  than  men. 
But  another  revolution  is  to  occur  in  this 
country  in  the  next  five  years  in  the  treat- 
ment of  this  wine.  W  e  will  soon  follow 
the  example  of  our  English  brethren  and 
never  drink  it  until  it  is  from  eicjht  to 
ten  years  old. 

A  year  or  two  ago  one  of  the  most 
fashionable  men  in  London  asked  me  to 
assist  him  in  orderingf  a  dinner  at  Del- 
monico's.  When  we  came  to  ordering  the 
wines,  he  exclaimed  asfainst  the  cham- 
pagne.    "What!"  said  he,  "drink  a  cham- 

279 


28o         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  EOUND  IT. 


pagne  of  1880.  Why,  it  is  too  absurd!" 
I  told  him  it  was  that  or  nothing,  for  we 
were  far  behind  them  in  England,  drinking 
new  champagnes  and  having  no  old  ones. 

The  idea  is  prevalent  that  champagne 
will  not  keep  in  this  climate.  After  a 
few  years  one  will  always  order  his 
supply  from  abroad  yearly,  keeping  his 
champagne  at  his  London  wine  mer- 
chant's or  at  the  vineyard.  To  evidence 
the  improvement  in  champagne  by  age, 
I  can  only  cite  that  the  champagne  of 
1874  has  sold  in  London  at  auction  for 
$7  a  bottle,  and  now  in  Paris  and  Lon- 
don you  pay  $8  a  bottle  for  a  '74  wine 
at  a  restaurant,  and  $6  for  an  1880 
wine  ;  at  the  vineyard  itself  $45  a  dozen, 
and  hard  to  obtain  at  this  price.  If 
you  once  drink  one  of  these  old  cham- 
pagnes you  will  never  again  drink  a  fresh 
wine.  In  England  they  now  drink  no 
Madeira  ;  it  is  never  served.  At  their 
dinners  they  pride  themselves  on  giving 
1874  champagne.      If  they  can  give  this 


ClIAMPAGXES  AND  OTHER    WINES.  281 


wine,  with  a  Golden  Sherry  and  a  fine 
glass  of  Port,  they  are  satisfied. 

It  will  be  well  to  remember  that  cham- 
pagnes are  now  known  to  connoisseurs 
by  their  \'intage.  Wines  of  some  vin- 
tages do  not  keep  at  all.  In  keeping 
champagnes,  keep  onl\',  or  order  kept  for 
you,  the  champagnes  of  the  best  vintages. 
Of  course,  there  is  much  risk  in  keeping 
any  champagne  ;  but  what  all  strive  for,  is 
to  possess  something  that  no  one  else  has  ; 
that  is  not  purchasable,  I  mean,  in  any 
quantity,  and  this  now  is  1874  champagne. 

To  properly  fyappd  champagne,  put  in 
the  pail  small  pieces  of  ice,  then  a  lajer 
of  rock  salt,  alternating  these  layers  until 
the  tub  is  full.  Put  the  bottle  in  the  tub  ; 
be  careful  to  keep  the  neck  of  the  bottle 
free  from  the  ice,  for  the  quantit\'  of 
wine  in  the  neck  of  the  bottle  beine 
small,  it  would  be  acted  upon  by  the 
ice  first.  If  possible,  turn  the  bottle 
every  five  minutes.  In  twenty-five  min- 
utes from  the  time  it  is  put  in  the  tub, 


282 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


it  should  be  in  perfect  condition,  and 
should  be  served  immediately.  What  I 
mean  by  perfect  condition  is,  that  \vhen 
the  wine  is  poured  from  the  bottle,  it 
should  contain  little  flakes  of  ice  ;  that 
is  a  real  frappe. 

It  is  often  a  mistake  to  frappe,  for  it 
takes  both  flavor  and  boch'  from  the 
wine,  and  none  but  a  very  rich,  fruit)' 
wine  should  ever  be  /rapped.  My  theory 
is  that  for  ordinary  cooling  of  wine,  it  is 
not  necessary  to  use  salt,  unless  you  are 
in  a  hurry.  The  salt  intensifies  the  cold 
and  makes  it  act  more  quickly.  You 
get  a  speedier  result.  I  should  simply 
use  above  formula,  omitting  the  salt. 
Champagne  should  not  be  left  in  a  re- 
frioferator  for  several  hours  before  being: 
served,  as  it  takes  away  its  freshness.  In 
servinof  it,  for  one  who  likes  it  cold, 
the  wine  should  be  cooled  sufficiently  to 
form  a  bead  on  the  outside  of  the  glass 
into  which  it  is  poured.  It  is  pretty,  and 
the  perfection  of  condition. 


CHAMPAGNES  AND  OTHER   WINES.  283 


In  regard  to  champagne  of  excellent 
years,  we  begin  with  1857,  as  there  were 
no  first-rate  vintages  of  this  wine  between 
1846  and  1857.  The  great  years  were: 
1834,  1846,  1857,  1858,  1861,  1862,  1865, 
1868,  1870,  1872,  and  1874,  the  last  ex- 
ceptionally fine  and  keeping  well  ;  1878, 
1880,  and  1884,  fine  wines;  1885  is  fair, 
but  not  to  be  classed  with  the  1884.  The 
Romans  noted  the  years  of  the  celebrated 
growths  of  their  wines,  marked  them  on 
their  wine  vessels,  when  Rome  was  a  Re- 
public, with  the  Consul's  name,  which  in- 
dicated the  vintage.  A  celebrated  vintage 
was  that  of  the  year  632,  when  Opimius 
was  Consul.  It  was  in  high  esteem  a 
century  afterwards. 

In  clarets,  we  also  make  a  mistake;  we 
cling  to  them  when  by  age  they  become 
too  thin  and  watery.  One  fills  up  one's 
wine  cellar  with  claret,  and  then  tena- 
ciously holds  it,  until  it  frequent!}'  loses 
the  fine  characteristics  of  a  first-class  wine. 
The  clarets  of  1854  promised  very  great 


284         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


things,  but  were  certainly  a  failure  in  La- 
tour,  and  in  some  of  the  other  wines  of 
that  year;  1857,  1858,  1881,  some  were 
good.  The  claret  of  1865  was  an  extrava- 
gant wine,  but  developed  a  good  deal  of 
acidity,  and  is  not  to-day  held  in  very  high 
esteem,  but  I  have  tasted  some  perfect 
of  that  year.  1868  promised  much,  but 
has  not  turned  out  as  good  as  was  ex- 
pected. 1869  sold  at  very  low  prices,  but 
has  become  the  best  wine  of  very  recent 
years.  1870  was  a  very  big,  full-bodied 
wine  ;  it  is  now  very  good.  Of  1871, 
some  of  them  are  excellent  (as  Haut 
Brion,  Lafitte,  Latour).  The  1874's  were 
very  good,  Latour  the  best  ;  1875  was 
very  good;  1877,  quite  good;  1878,  very 
good;  1879,  only  moderate;  1880,  light 
and  delicate,  quite  good  ;  1881,  big  wines, 
very  promising;  1884  promised  well,  and 
1887  promised  to  be  great  wines.  I  do 
not  think  it  is  easy  to  be  certain  of  Bor- 
deaux wines  until  they  have  been  in  bot- 
tles some  years.     A  wine  which  while  in 


CHAMPAGXES  AND  OTHER   WINES.  285 


the  wood  may  be  excellent,  may  not  ripen 
the  right  sort  of  way  in  bottles  and  prove 
disappointing.  Decant  all  your  clarets 
before  serving  them,  even  your  vin  ordi- 
naire. If  at  a  dinner  you  give  both  Bur- 
gu-ndy  and  claret,  give  your  finest  claret 
with  the  roast,  your  Burgundy  with  the 
cheese.  Stand  up  both  wines  the  morn- 
ing of  the  dinner,  and  in  decanting,  hold 
the  decanter  in  your  left  hand,  and  let 
the  wine  first  pour  against  the  inside  of 
the  neck  of  the  decanter,  so  as  to  break 
its  fall.  With  Burgundy,  the  Clos  "V^ou- 
oeots  have  run  out.  The  insect  has 
destroyed  them.  The  Chambertins  or 
Romance  Conti,  when  you  give  them  to 
those  who  can  appreciate  fine  wines,  have 
a  telling  effect. 

Table  sherries  should  be  decanted 
and  put  in  the  refrigerator  one  hour 
before  dinner.  Personall)-,  as  a  table 
sherry  I  prefer  to  drink  the  new,  light, 
delicate  sherries,  as  they  come  from  Spain, 
directly  from  the  wood,  before  they  are 


286         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


darkened  by  being  kept  in  glass,  and 
before  all  the  water,  that  is  always  in 
them,  has  disappeared.  This  is  the  taste 
of  the  Spanish  people  themselves.  They 
drink  them  from  the  wood. 

There  is  no  need  of  having  a  large 
cellar  of  wine  in  this  country,  for  we 
Americans  are  such  Arabs,  that  we  are 
never  contented  to  stay  quietly  at  home 
and  enjoy  our  country,  and  our  own  per- 
fect climate.  No  sooner  have  we  built 
a  charming  residence,  including  a  wine 
cellar,  than  we  must  needs  dash  off  to 
Europe,  to  see  what  the  Prince  of  Wales 
is  doing,  so  that  literally  a  New  Yorker 
does  not  live  in  his  New  York  residence, 
at  most,  more  than  four  or  five  months 
in  the  year.  In  the  other  seven  or  eight, 
his  servants  have  ample  time  to  leisurely 
drink  up  the  wine  in  his  cellar,  bottle  by 
bottle ;  therefore,  I  advise  against  laying 
in  any  large  supply  of  wine.  Your  wine 
merchant  will  always  supply  you  with 
all  wines  excepting  old  clarets ;  these  you 


CHAMPAGNES  AXD  OTHER   WINES.  287 


must  have  a  stock  of ;  and,  as  servants 
do  not  take  to  claret,  )"ou  are  compara- 
tiveh'  safe  in  hoarding  up  a  good  lot  of  it. 
Your  old  champagnes  you  can  order  from 
London,  i.e.  a  winter's  supply,  every  )'ear, 
for  as  they  say  it  will  not  keep  in  this 
climate,  )-ou  must  do  so  to  get  it  of  any 
asi'e.  When  sherrv  becomes  old  and  has 
been  kept  some  time  in  glass,  they  then 
drink  it  in  Spain  as  a  liqiietir. 

If  you  cannot  get  hold  of  the  best,  the 
very  best  and  finest  old  Madeira,  give  up 
that  wine  and  take  to  sherry.  I  have 
seen  sherry  that  could  not  be  distin- 
guished from  Madeira  by  experts.  Again, 
I  have  seen  a  superb  sherry  bring  a  hun- 
dred dollars  a  dozen.  The  most  perfect 
sherry  I  ever  drank  was  the  "  Fors)-th 
sherry,"  given  to  Vice-President  Forsyth 
by  the  Queen  of  Spain,  when  he  was  the 
American  Minister  at  her  Court.  I  grive 
during  dinner  a  light,  delicate,  dry  Mon- 
tilla  sherry.  At  dessert,  with  and  after 
fruit,  a  fine  Amontillado. 


DINNERS. 


289 


I 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


Assigning  Guests  at  Dinner —  The  Boston  fashion  dying 
out — 77/1?  approved  Manner — Going  in  to  Dinner — 
Time  to  be  spent  at  table  —  Table  Decoration —  Too 
many  flowers  in  bad  taste  —  Simplicity  the  best  style  — 
Queen  Victoria's  table — Her  Dinner  served  at  8:15, 
but  she  eats  her  best  meal  at  2  P.M.  —  Being  late  at 
Dinner  a  breach  of  good  Manners  —  A  Dinner  ac- 
ceptance a  sacred  Obligation  —  A  Visile  de  digestion. 

The  Boston  fashion  adopted  here  for 
years,  of  one's  finding,  on  entering  the 
house  in  which  he  was  to  dine,  a  small 
envelope  on  a  silver  salver  in  which  was 
inclosed  a  card  bearing  on  it  the  name  of 
the  lady  assigned  to  him  to  take  in  to 
dinner,  though  still  in  use,  is,  however, 
going  out  of  fashion.  We  are  returning 
to  the  old  habit  of  assigning  the  guests 
in  the  drawingf-room. 

In  going  in  to  dinner,  there  is  but  one 
rule  to  be  observed.  The  lady  of  the 
house  in  almost  every  case  goes  in  last, 

all  her  guests  preceding  her,  with  this  ex- 

291 


292 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


ception,  that  if  the  President  of  the  United 
States  dines  with  you,  or  Royalty,  he  takes 
in  the  lady  of  the  house,  preceding  all  of 
the  guests.  When  no  ladies  are  present, 
the  host  should  ask  the  most  distinguished 
guest,  or  the  person  to  whom  the  dinner  is 
given,  to  lead  the  way  in  to  dinner,  and 
he  should  follow  all  the  guests.  The 
cards  on  the  plates  indicate  his  place  to 
each  one.  By  gesture  alone,  the  host 
directs  his  guests  to  the  dining-room,  say- 
ing aloud  to  the  most  distinguished  guest, 
"Will  you  kindly  take  the  seat  on  my 
right  ?  " 

The  placing  of  your  guests  at  table  re- 
quires an  intimate  knowledge  of  society. 
It  is  only  by  constant  association  that  you 
can  know  who  are  congenial.  If  you  are 
assigned  to  one  you  are  indifferent  to, 
your  only  hope  lies  in  your  next  neigh- 
bor ;  and  with  this  hope  and  fear  you 
enter  the  dining-room,  not  knowing  who 
that  will  be.  At  the  table  conversation 
should  be  crisp ;    it  is    in  bad    taste  to 


DINNERS. 


293 


absorb  it  all.  Macaulay,  at  a  dinner, 
would  so  monopolize  it  that  the  great  wit, 
Sydney  Smith,  said  he  did  not  distinguish 
between  monolooue  and  dialooue. 

When  the  President  of  the  United 
States  goes  to  a  dinner,  all  the  guests 
must  be  assembled  ;  they  stand  in  a  horse- 
shoe circle  around  the  salon ;  the  Presi- 
dent enters  ;  when  the  lady  of  the  house 
approaches  him,  he  gives  her  his  arm,  and 
they  lead  the  way  to  the  dining-room,  the 
President  sitting  in  the  host's  place,  with 
his"  hostess  on  his  rio^ht.  On  arrivinof  at 
the  house  where  he  is  to  dine,  if  the 
guests  are  not  all  assembled,  he  remains 
in  his  carriage  until  he  is  notified  that 
they  are  all  present.  No  one  can  rise  to 
leave  the  table  until  the  President  himself 
rises.  If  he  happens  to  be  deeply  in- 
terested in  some  fair  neighbor,  and  takes 
no  note  of  time,  the  patience  of  the  com- 
pany is  sadly  tried. 

On  entering  a  sahji  and  findino-  \-our- 
self  surrounded  b)-  noted  or  fashionable 


294         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


people,  you  are  naturally  flattered  at  be- 
ing included  ;  if  the  people  are  unnoted, 
you  are  annoyed.  The  surprise  to  me  is 
that  in  this  city  our  cleverest  men  and 
politicians  do  not  oftener  seek  society 
and  become  its  brilliant  ornaments,  as  in 
England  and  on  the  Continent  of  Europe. 
Disraeli,  Mr.  Gladstone,  Lord  Palmerston, 
all  were  in  society  and  were  great  diners 
out.  In  fact,  all  the  distinguished  men 
of  Europe  make  part  and  parcel  of 
society  ;  whilst  here,  they  shirk  it  as  if  it 
were  beneath  their  dignity.  They  should 
know  that  there  is  no  power  like  the 
social  power;  it  makes  and  unmakes. 
The  proverb  is  that,  "  The  way  to  a 
man's  heart  is  through  the  stomach." 

Now  as  to  the  length  of  a  good  din- 
ner. Napoleon  the  Third  insisted  on 
being  served  in  three-quarters  of  an  hour. 
As  usual  here  we  run  from  one  extreme 
to  another.  One  of  our  most  fashionable 
Avomen  boasted  to  me  that  she  had  dined 
out  the    day  before,   and  the  time  con- 


DINNERS. 


295 


sumed  from  the  hour  she  left  her  house, 
until  her  return  home,  was  but  one  hour 
and  forty  minutes.  This  is  absurd.  A 
lover  of  the  flesh  pots  of  Egypt  grum- 
bled to  me  that  his  plate  was  snatched 
away  from  him  by  the  servant  before  he 
could  half  get  through  the  appetizing 
morsel  on  it.  This  state  of  things  has 
been  brought  about  by  stately,  handsome 
dinners,  spun  out  to  too  great  length. 
One  hour  and  a  half  at  the  table  is  long 
enough. 

A  word  about  the  decoration  of  the 
table.  In  this  we  are  now  agrain  runnino- 
from  one  extreme  to  the  other,  A  few 
years  ago,  the  florist  took  possession  of 
the  table,  and  made  a  flower  garden  of 
it,  regardless  of  cost.  Now,  at  the  best 
dinners,  you  see  perhaps  in  the  centre 
of  the  table  one  handsome  basket  of 
flowers  ;  no  bouquets  de  corsage  or  bouton- 
nicrcs :  the  table  set  with  austere  sim- 
plicit)' ;  a  few  silver  dishes  with  bonbons 
and  cotnpotiers  of  fruit,  that  is  all.  Now, 


296 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


nothing  decorates  a  dinner  table  as 
flowers  do,  and  of  these  I  think  the 
Gloire  dc  Paris  roses,  the  Rothschild 
rose,  and  Captain  Chrystie's  the  most 
effective.  A  better  result  is  produced  by 
having  all  of  one  kind  of  flower,  be  it 
roses,  or  tulips,  or  carnations. 

It  is  now  the  fashion  to  have  the 
most  superb  embroidered  table-cloths 
from  Paris,  in  themselves  costing  nearly 
a  year's  income.  But  it  is  to  be  remem- 
bered that  thirty  years  ago  we  imported 
from  England  the  fashion  of  placing  in 
the  centre  of  the  table  a  handsome  piece 
of  square  scarlet  satin,  on  which  to  place 
the  silver.  At  the  dinner  the  eye  should 
have  a  feast  as  well  as  the  palate.  A 
beautifully  laid  table  is  very  effective.  I 
have  seen  Her  Majesty's  table  at  Wind- 
sor Castle  all  ready  for  her.  I  have 
heard  her  footmen,  in  green  and  gold, 
re-echo  from  hall  to  kitchen  the  note 
that  "dinner  is  served,"  and  then  I  was 
told  to  go ;  but  I  saw  all  I  wanted  to 


DINNERS. 


297 


see.  Her  six  footmen  placed  their  hands 
on  the  little  velvet  Bishop's  cap,  which 
covered  the  lion  and  the  unicorn  in 
frosted  gold  on  the  cover  of  her  six 
entree  dishes ;  as  dinner  was  announced, 
this  velvet  cap  was  removed.  The  keeper 
of  her  jewel  room  has  a  large  book  of 
lithographs  of  just  the  pieces  of  gold  plate 
that  are  to  decorate  Her  Majesty's  table 
on  different  occasions,  all  regulated  by  the 
rank  of  her  guest.  Her  Majesty,  in  the 
time  of  Prince  Albert,  dined  at  8:15. 
Her  head  chef  informed  me  then  that 
her  real  dinner  was  eaten  at  2  p.m.,  with 
the  Prince  of  Wales,  and  it  was  for  this 
he  exercised  his  talent.  At  eioht  and 
a  quarter  she  took  but  soup  and  fish. 

It  is  to  be  borne  in  mind  that  a  host 
or  hostess  cannot  be  too  courteous  or 
gracious  to  their  guests  ;  and  again,  that 
guests  in  being  late  at  dinner  oftentimes 
commit  a  breach  of  politeness.  Apropos 
of  this,  whilst  in  Paris  one  of  our  Minis- 
ters to  the  French  Court  related  to  me 


298  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


the  following  anecdote,  illustrating  true 
French  politeness.  His  daughter  arrived 
late  at  the  dinner  of  a  high  personage. 
When  her  father  remonstrated,  she  replied, 
"  Did  you  not  see  that  one  of  the  family 
arrived  after  us?"  The  next  day  our 
Minister  heard  that  the  Duchess,  with 
whom  he  had  dined,  had  sent  her  daucrh- 
ter  out  of  the  room  to  come  in  after 
them,  to  relieve  them  of  any  embarrass- 
ment at  being  late. 

Another  point  has  had  some  discussion. 
At  a  large  dinner,  where  the  only  lady  is 
the  hostess,  should  she  rise  and  receive 
each  guest  ?  This  is  still  a  vexed  question. 
Again,  at  a  large  dinner  of  men,  is  it 
incumbent  on  every  one  present  to  rise 
on  the  entrance  of  each  guest  ?  On  one 
occasion  I  failed  myself  to  do  this,  not 
thinking  it  necessary.  The  distinguished 
man  who  entered  said  afterwards  that  I 
had  "slighted  him."  It  was  certainly 
unintentional.  In  a  small  room,  if  all  get 
up,  it  must  create  confusion. 


DINNERS. 


299 


If  you  intend  to  decline  an  invitation 
to  dinner,  do  so  at  as  early  a  date  as 
possible.  A  dinner  invitation,  once  ac- 
cepted, is  a  sacred  obligation.  If  you  die 
before  the  dinner  takes  place,  your  exec- 
utor must  attend  the  dinner.  (This  is 
not  to  be  taken  literall)',  but  to  illustrate 
the  obligation.)  The  person  to  whom 
the  dinner  is  given  takes  in  the  hostess, 
if  she  is  present,  going  in  first  with 
her ;  that  is,  if  it  is  only  men  (no  ladies 
present  but  the  hostess).  Should  there 
be  ladies,  he  still  takes  in  the  hostess, 
but  then  follows  all  the  guests  ;  going  in 
with  the  hostess  after  all  the  guests. 
The  only  exception  to  this  rule  is  where 
the  President  of  the  United  States,  or 
Royalty  dines  with  you. 

In  England,  in  the  note  of  invitation 
to  dinner,  you  are  never  asked  to  meet 
any  one  but  Royalty.  The  distinction  of 
rank  makes  the  reason  for  this  obvious. 
If  Royalty  dines  with  you,  at  the  top 
of    the    note   of    invitation,    in    the  left 


3°°  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


hand  corner,  it  is  written  :  "  To  meet 
His  Ro)al  Highness,"  or  other  Royalty. 
Our  custom  is  otherwise.  It  is  to  invite 
you  to  meet  Mr.  Robinson,  or  Mrs. 
Robinson,  or  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robinson. 
This  is  accepted  and  approved  by  all  in 
this  country,  for  in  this  way  you  are 
privileged  to  invite,  at  a  day's  notice,  any 
number  of  guests ;  for  one  sees  it  is  to 
meet  a  stranger,  temporarily  here  ;  a  suffi- 
cient reason  for  so  short  a  notice  to  a 
large  dinner  ;  besides  which  you  have  it 
in  your  power  to  pay  the  stranger  or 
strangers  a  compliment  in  a  pointed  way, 
by  making  them  or  him  the  honored  guest 
of  that  dinner. 

If  you  propose  accepting,  your  note 
of  acceptance  should  be  sent  the  day  after 
the  invitation  has  been  received.  After 
dining  at  a  ladies'  dinner  it  is  obligatory 
that  you  leave  your  card  at  the  house 
where  you  have  dined,  either  the  next 
day  or  within  a  day  or  two.  This  is 
called,  by  the  French,  a  visite  dc  digestion. 


DINNEKS. 


301 


In  England,  this  custom  is  dying  out, 
for  men  have  not  the  time  to  do  it. 

I  would  here  compare  society  to  a  series 
of  intersecting  circles  ;  each  one  is  a  circle 
of  its  own,  and  thev  all  unite  in  making 
what  is  known  as  general  society.  Meet- 
ing people  at  a  large  ball  is  no  evidence 
of  their  beinof  received  in  the  smaller 
circles.  What  the  French  call  the  petit 
comite  of  good  society  is  the  inmost  circle 
of  all,  but,  naturally,  it  is  confined  to  a 
very  few.  Meeting  a  person  constantly 
at  dinner,  at  the  most  exclusive  houses, 
should  be  sufficient  evidence  to  you  that 
he  or  she  is  received  everywhere,  and  if 
you  find  people  persistently  excluded  from 
the  best  houses  at  dinners,  you  may  be 
satisfied  that  there  is  some  good  reason 
for  it. 

When  you  introduce  a  man  into  the 
sanctuary  of  your  own  family,  it  is  sup- 
posed by  a  fiction  to  be  the  greatest 
compliment  you  can  pay  him  ;  but  do 
not  be  misled  by  this,  for  there  is  nothing 


302         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


more  trying  to  the  guest  than  to  be  the 
one  outsider.  A  friend  of  mine  invari- 
ably refuses  such  invitations.  "  Why," 
said  he,  "  my  dinner  at  home  is  suffi- 
ciently good ;  I  am  called  out  with  my 
wife, — both  of  us  compelled  to  don  our 
best  attire,  order  the  carriage,  and  go  to 
see  and  be  with,  whom  ?  A  family  whose 
members  are  not  particularly  interesting 
to  us."  Men  with  whom  you  are  only 
on  a  business  footing  you  should  dine 
at  your  Club,  and  not  inflict  them  on 
your  family. 


COOKS  AND  CATERING. 


303 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


Some  practical  Questions  ansivered — Difference  be- 
tween Men  and  Women  Cooks  —  Swedish  IVomen  the 
cleanest  and  most  economical — My  bills  with  a 
Chef — My  bills  with  a  Jl'oman  Cook — Hints  on 
Marketing  —  /  have  done  tny  o^tvn  Buying  for  forty 
years  —  Mme.  Rothschild  personally  supervises  her 
famous  Dinners  —  Menu  of  an  old  fashioned  South- 
ern Dinner — Success  of  an  Impromptu  Banquet. 

Twenty  years  ago  there  were  not  over 
xhv&Q  chefs  in  private  families  in  this  city. 
It  is  now  the  exception  not  to  find  a 
man  of  fashion  keeping  a  first-class  chef 
or  a  famous  cordon  b/ai.  In  the  last  six 
years  Swedish  women  cooks  have  come 
over  here,  and  are  excellent,  and  by  some 
supposed  to  be  better  than  chefs.  Xo 
woman,  in  my  opinion,  can  give  as  fin- 
ished a  dinner  as  a  man.  There  is  always 
a  somethins:  in  the  dinner  which  has  es- 
caped  her.  It  is  like  German  and  Italian 
opera,  —  there  is  a  finish  to  the  Italian 
that  the  Germans  can    never  get.  But 

305 


3o6         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


Swedish  cooks  deserve  special  mention ; 
they  are  really  wonderful — cleanliness 
itself.  That  is  where  the  French  chef 
fails.  He  must  have  scullions  tracking 
his  very  footsteps  to  keep  things  clean, 
while  the  Swedish  woman  does  her  work 
without  making  dirt.  These  women  get 
nearly  as  large  wages  as  the  men, — sixty 
dollars  a  month  and  a  scullion  maid. 
What  a  contrast  to  livinfj  in  France !  I 
had  the  best  chef  in  Pau  in  1856  for 
twenty-five  dollars,  and  the  scullion  re- 
ceived three  dollars  a  month. 

The  question  is  often  asked.  What  is 
the  difference  in  expense  to  a  household 
between  a  chef  or  a  woman  cook  ?  This 
question  is  only  learned  by  experience, 
which  teaches  me  that  with  a  woman,  my 
butcher's  bill  would  be  $250  to  $275  a 
month  ;  with  a  chef,  $450  to  $500.  Gro- 
cer's bill,  with  woman  cook,  say,  $75  ; 
with  a  chef,  $125.  This  does  not  include 
entertaininof.  For  a  dinner  of  twelve  or 
fourteen    one's  marketing  is  easily  sixty 


COOK'S  AND  CATERING. 


307 


dollars,  without  the  foic  gras  or  fruit.  An 
A I  chef's  wages  is  $100  a  month;  he 
takes  ten  per  cent,  commission  on  the 
butcher,,  grocer,  baker,  and  milkman's  bill. 
If  he  does  not  get  it  directly,  he  gets  it 
indirectly.  In  other  words,  besides  his 
waofes,  he  counts  on  these  commissions. 
I  speak  now  of  the  ablest  and  best  ; 
others  not  quite  so  capable  take  five  per 
cent. 

Always  remember  that  the  Frenchman 
is  a  creature  of  impulses,  and  works  for 
two  things,  glory  and  money.  An  every- 
day dinner  wearies  him,  but  a  dinner  privc, 
a  special  dinner,  oh,  this  calls  forth  his 
talent,  which  shows  that  the  custom  some 
have  of  calling  in  and  employing  a  chef 
to  cook  them  a  special  dinner  is  correct. 
If  you  do  not  keep  a  cJuf  out  of  respect 
for  your  purse  or  your  health,  it  is  a 
good  plan  to  know  of  an  "artist"  whom 
you  can  employ  on  special  occasions,  with 
the  express  agreement  that  he  submits 
the  list  of  what  he  wants,  and  lets  you 


3o8         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


make  the  purchases,  for  these  gentry  like 
to  make  a  little  economic,  which  always 
benefits  themselves,  and  such  economic 
gives  you  poor  material  for  him  to  work 
upon,  instead  of  good. 

How  often  have  I  heard  a  hostess 
boast,  "  I  never  give  any  attention  to 
the  details  of  my  dinner,  I  simply  tell 
my  butler  how  many  people  we  are  to 
have."  In  nine  cases  out  of  ten  this 
is  apparent  in  the  dinner.  Madame 
Rothschild,  who  has  always  given  the 
best  dinners  in  Paris,  personally  super- 
vises everything.  The  great  Duchess  of 
Sutherland,  the  Queen's  friend,  when  she 
entertained,  inspected  every  arrangement 
personally  herself.  I  daily  comment  to 
my  cook  on  the  performance  of  the  pre- 
vious day.  No  one,  especially  in  this 
country,  can  accomplish  great  results  with- 
out orivincr  time  and  attention  to  these 
details.  No  French  cook  will  take  any 
interest  in  his  work  unless  he  receives 
praise  and  criticism  ;    but  above  all  things, 


COOKS  AND  CATERING. 


you  must  know  how  to  criticise.  If  he 
finds  you  are  able  to  appreciate  his  work 
when  good,  and  condemn  it  when  ])ad, 
he  improves,  and  gives  you  something 
of  vahie. 

Now  let  us  treat  of  dinners  as  given 
before  the  introduction  of  chefs,  and  still 
preferred  by  the  majority  of  people. 

The  best  talent  with  poor  material  may 
Qfive  a  fair  dinner,  but  if  the  material  is 
poor,  the  dinner  will  evidence  it.  For 
forty  years  I  have  always  marketed  myself 
and  secured  the  respect  of  ni)'  butcher, 
lettinq-  him  know  that  I  knew  as  much 
if  not  more  than  he  did. 

In  selecting  your  shin  of  beef,  remem- 
ber that  a  fresh  shin  is  always  the  best 
for  soup.  In  choosing  fish,  look  at  their 
gills,  which  should  be  a  bright  red. 

See  your  Jilct  cut  with  the  fat  well 
marbled,  cut  from  young  beef.  Sweet- 
breads come  in  pairs ;  one  fine,  one  in- 
ferior. Pay  an  extra  price,  and  get  your 
butcher  to  cut  th(Mn  apart  and  give  you 


3IO         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


only  the  two  large  heart  breads,  leaving 
to  him  the  two  thin  throat  breads  to  sell 
at  a  reduced  price. 

In  poultry  there  are  two  kinds  of  fat, 
yellow  and  white.  Fowls  fed  on  rice  have 
white  fat ;  those  on  corn  meal,  yellow 
fat.  By  the  feet  of  the  bird,  you  can 
tell  its  age. 

The  black  and  red  feathered  fowls  are 
always  preferred.  Never  take  a  gray 
feathered  bird. 

Look  at  the  head  of  the  canvasback  and 
the  redhead  ;  see  them  together,  and  then 
you  will  readily  see  the  birds  to  pick,  i.e. 
the  canvasback.  Weigh  in  your  hand  each 
snipe  or  woodcock ;  the  weight  will  tell 
you  if  the  bird  is  fat  and  plump. 

In  bu}'ing  terrapin,  look  at  each  one, 
and  see  if  they  are  the  simon-pure  dia- 
mond back  Chesapeakes. 

In  choosing  your  saddle  of  rnutton,  take 
the  short-legged  ones,  the  meat  coming 
well  down  the  leg,  nearly  reaching  the 
foot ;    a    short,   thick,  stubby  little    tail  ; 


COOKS  AND  CATERING. 


must  have  the  look  of  the  pure  South- 
down, with  black  legs  and  feet. 

Of  hothouse  grapes,  I  find  the  large 
white  grapes  the  best,  Muscats  of  Alex- 
and  ria. 

Parch  and  grind  your  coffee  the  day 
you  drink  it.      Always  buy  green  coffee. 

Never  use  the  small  timbalcs  of  pdtc  de 
foie  gras,  generally  given  one  to  each 
guest.  Always  have  an  entire  foic  gras, 
be  it  large  or  small,  for  in  this  way 
you  are  apt  to  get  old  foie  gras  thus 
worked  up. 

Always  buy  your  foic  gras  from  an  A  r 
house,  never  from  the  butcher  or  fruiterer. 

I  here  give  as  a  recollection  of  the  j^ast 
the 

MENU    OF    AN     OLD-FASHIONED     SOUTHERN  DINNER. 

Terrapin  Soup  and  Oyster  Soup,  or  Mock  Turtle  Soup, 

Soft  shell  or  Cylindrical  nose  Turtle.* 
Boiled  fresh  water  Trout  (known  with  us  at  the  North 
as  Chub). 


*  This  turtle  is  only  found  in  the  ditches  of  the  rice  fields,  and 
is  the  most  valued  delicacy  of  the  South.    It  is  too  delicate  to 


312         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


Shad  stuffed  and  baked  (we  broil  it). 
Boiled  Turkey,  Oyster  sauce.    A  roast  Peahen. 
Boiled  Southern  Ham. 
Escalloped  oysters.    Maccaroni  with  cheese.    Prawn  pie. 
Crabs  stuffed  in  shell. 
Roast  Ducks.    A  haunch  of  Venison. 
Dessert. 

Plum  Pudding.    Mince  Pies.    Trifle.    Floating  Island. 
Blanc  Mange.  Jelly. 
Ice  Cream. 

On  repeatedly  visiting  the  West  Indies, 
I  found  that  two  of  the  best  CaroHna  and 
Georgia  dishes,  supposed  always  to  have 
emanated  from  the  African  brain,  were 
imported  from  these  islands,  and  really 
had  not  even  their  origin  there,  but  were 
brought  from  Bordeaux  to  the  West  In- 
dies, and  thence  were  carried  to  the 
South.  I  refer  to  the  Cj-ab  a  la  Creole, 
and  Les  Aubergines  farcies  a  la  Bordc- 
laise. 

After  the  grreat  revolution,  when  the 
Africans  of  Hayti  drove  from  the  island 

transport  to  the  North.  I  have  made  several  attempts  to  do  this, 
but  invariably  failed,  the  turtle  dying  before  it  could  reach  New 
York.  Its  shell  is  gelatinous,  all  of  which  is  used  in  the  soup.  It 
is  only  caught  in  July  and  August,  and  even  then  it  is  very  rare, 
and  brings  a  high  price. 


COOKS  AND  CATERING. 


their  former  masters,  crood  French  cook- 
intr  came  with  them  to  Baltimore,  and 
Other  parts  of  the  South.  In  talking  of 
Southern  dishes,  I  must  not  forget  the 
Southern  barnyard-fed  turkey.  They 
were  fattened  on  small  rice  and  were 
very  fine.  In  discussing  Southern  din- 
ners, I  cannot  omit  making  mention  of 
the  old  Southern  butler,  quite  an  in- 
stitution ;  devoted  to  his  master,  and 
taking  as  much  pride  in  the  family 
as  the  family  took  in  itself.  Among 
Southern  household  servants  (all  colored 
people),  the  man  bore  two  names  as  well 
as  the  woman.  The  one  he  answered 
to  as  servant,  the  other  was  his  title. 
Whenever,  as  a  boy,  I  wanted  particu- 
larly to  gratify  my  father's  old  butler, 
I  would  ofive  him  his  title,  which  was 
"  Major  Brown."  tie  was  commonly 
called  Nat.  I  remember,  on  one  occa- 
sion, a  cjuest  at  mv  father's  table  ask- 
ing  Major  Brown  to  hand  him  the  rice, 
whilst  he  was  eating  fish.    The  old  ijrav- 


314         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  EOUXD  IT. 


haired  butler  drew  himself  up  with  great 
dignity,  and  replied,  "  Massa,  we  don't 
eat  rice  with  fish  in  this  house." 

a 

Some  features  of  the  everyday  South- 
ern dinner  were  pilaii,  i.e.  boiled  chickens 
on  a  bed  of  rice,  with  a  large  piece  of 
bacon  between  the  chickens  ;  "  Hoppin 
John,"  that  is,  cowpeas  with  bacon  ;  okra 
soup,  a  staple  dish  ;  shrimp  and  prawn 
pie  ;  crab  salad  ;  pompey  head  (a  stuffed 
Jilct  of  veal)  ;  roast  quail  and  snipe,  and, 
during  the  winter,  shad  daily,  boiled, 
broiled  and  baked. 

As  there  is  reciprocity  in  everything, 
if  you  dine  with  others,  they,  in  turn, 
must  dine  with  you.  Passing  several 
winters  at  Nassau,  N.P.,  I  dined  twice  a 
week,  regularly,  with  the  Governor  of 
the  Bahamas.      I  suQ^g-ested  to  him  the 

o  <_> 

propriety  of  my  giving  him  a  dinner. 
He  smiled,  and  said  : 

"  My  dear  fellow,  I  represent  Her 
Majesty ;  I  cannot,  in  this  town,  dine 
out  of  my  own  house." 


COOKS  AND  CATERING.  S^S 

"Egad!"  said  I,  "then  dine  with  me 
in  the  countr\' !  " 

"That  will  do,"  he  replied;  "but  how 
will  you,  as  a  stranger,  gef  up  a  dinner 
in  this  land,  where  it  is  a  daily  struggle 
to  get  food  ?  " 

"  Leave  that  to  me,"  I  said.  The 
Governor's  accepting  this  invitation,  re- 
called a  story  my  father  oft  related,  which 
caused  me  some  anxiety  as  to  the  ex- 
pense of  my  undertaking.  A  distinguished 
man  with  whom  he  was  associated  at  the 
bar  was  sent  as  our  Minister  to  Russia; 
when  he  returned  home,  my  father  inter- 
viewed him  as  to  his  Russian  experience. 
He  said,  that  after  being  repeatedly  enter- 
tained by  the  ro)-al  family,  he  felt  that 
it  was  incumbent  on  him.  in  turn,  to  enter- 
tain them  himself ;  so  he  approached  the 
Emperor's  grand  Chamberlain  and  ex- 
pressed this  wish,  who  at  once  accepted 
J  an  Invitation  to  breakfast  for  the  whole 
Imperial  family.  "  McAllister,"  he  said, 
"  I  gave  that  breakfast  ;   I  was  charmed 


3i6         SOCIETY  AS  I  NAVE  FOUND  IT. 


with  its  success,  but  my  dear  man,  it  took 
my  entire  fortune  to  pay  for  it.  I  have 
been  a  poor  man  ever  since." 

Having  this  party  on  hand,  I  went  to 
the  chef  of  the  hotel,  interviewed  him, 
found  he  had  been  at  one  time  the  head 
cook  of  the  New  York  Hotel  in  this 
city ;  so  I  felt  safe  in  his  hands.  I  went 
to  work  and  made  out  a  list  of  all  the 
French  dishes  that  could  be  successfully 
rechauffed.  Such  as  cotclcttes  de  moitton 
en  papillottc,  vol  an  vent  a  la  Jinanciere, 
boudins  de  volaille  a  la  Richelieu,  litubales 
de  riz  de  veau,  el  quenelle  de  volaille ;  a 
boiled  Yorkshire  ham,  easily  heated  over, 
to  cook  which  properly  it  must  be  sim- 
mered from  six  to  seven  hours  until 
you  can  turn  the  bone  ;  then  lay  it 
aside  twelve  hours  to  cool  ;  then  put  it 
in  an  oven,  and  constantly  baste  it  with 
a  pint  of  cider.  It  must  be  served  hot, 
even  after  being  cut.  The  oftener  it  is 
placed  in  the  oven  and  heated  the  better  it 
becomes.     Thus  cooked,  they   have  been 


COOKS  AND  CATERING.  317 

by  one  of  my  friends  hermetically  sealed 
in  a  tin  case  and  sent  to  several  distin- 
guished men  in  England,  who  have  found 
them  a  great  delicacy. 

I  then  hired  for  the  day  for  $20  a  shut- 
up  country  place ;  got  plenty  of  English 
bunting,  quantities  of  flowers ;  saw  that 
my  champagne  was  of  the  best  and  well 
frappdd ;  made  a  speech  to  the  waiters 
and  cook,  urging  them  to  show  these 
Britishers  what  the  Yankee  could  do  when 
put  to  his  stumps  ;  and  then  with  a  long 
cavalcade  of  cooks,  waiters,  pots,  and  pans, 
heading  the  procession  myself,  went  off  to 
my  orange-grove  retreat,  some  five  miles 
from  Nassau,  made  mv  men  work  like 
beavers,  and  awaited  the  arrival  of  my 
sixty  English  guests,  who  were  coming  to 
see  the  American  fiasco  in  the  way  of  a 
country  dinner  and  file.  In  they  came, 
end  great  was  their  surprise  when  they 
beheld  a  table  for  sixty  people,  pieces 
months  of  confectionery,  flowers,  wines  all 
nicely  decanted,  and  a  really  good  French 


3l8         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


dinner,  at  once  served  to  them.  I  only 
relate  this  to  show  that  where  there  is 
a  will  there  is  a  way,  and  that  you  can  so 
work  upon  a  French  cook's  vanity  that 
he  will,  on  a  spurt  like  this,  outdo  him- 
self. 

Marvelous  to  relate,  the  chef  positively 
refused  to  be  recompensed. 

"  No,  sir,"  he  replied  ;  "  I  am  well  off ; 
I  wish  no  pay.  Monsieur  has  appreciated 
my  efforts.  Monsieur  knows  when  things 
are  well  done.  He  has  made  a  great  suc- 
cess. All  the  darkies  on  this  island  could 
not  have  cooked  that  dinner.  I  am  satis- 
fied." 

I  was  so  pleased  with  the  fellow,  that 
when  he  broke  down  in  health  he  came 
to  me,  and  I  had  him  as  my  cook  two 
Newport  summers.  I  kept  him  alive  by 
giving  him  old  Jamaica  rum  and  milk, 
fresh  from  the  cow,  taken  before  his 
breakfast, — an  old  Southern  remedy  for 
consumption. 

Some  of  his  remarks  on    Nassau  are 


COOKS  AND  CATERING. 


319 


worthy  of  repeating.  I  said  to  him, 
''Chef,  why  don't  they  raise  vegetables 
on  this  fruitful  island  ?  Why  bring  them 
all  from  New  York?" 

"  Monsieur,"  he  replied,  "  here  you  sow 
your  seed  at  night,  by  midnight  it  is  ripe 
and  fit  to  cook  ;  bv  mornintr  it  has  (>"one 
to  seed.  The  same  way  witli  sheep. 
You  bring  a  flock  of  sheep  here,  with 
fine  fleeces  of  wool  ;  in  a  few  months  they 
are  goats,  and  not  wool  enough  on  them 
to  plug  your  ears." 


BALLS. 


321 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

The  "Banner  Ball"  —  Hoif  to  prepare  a  Ball-room 
Floor  —  A  curious  Costutiie  and  a  sharp  Answer — The 
Turkish  Ball  —  Indisposition  of  ladies  to  dance  at  a 
Public  Ball  —  The  Yorktown  Centennial  Ball  —  Com- 
mittees are  Ungrateful — My  Experience  in  this  Mat- 
ter —  /  discover  Mr.  Blaine  and  introduce  Myself. 

In  1876,  asked  by  a  committee  of 
eighty-two  ladies  to  act  as  Manager  of  a 
ball  they  were  getting  up  at  Chickering 
Hall,  in  aid  of  the  "  Centennial  Union," 
to  be  called  the  "  Banner  Ball,"  I  ac- 
cepted their  flattering  invitation  to  lead 
so  fair  a  band  of  patriots. 

On  examining  the  premises,  I  found  that 
on  a  new  floor  they  had  put  a  heavy  coat 
of  varnish  ;  there  was  nothing  then  to  be 
done  but  to  sprinkle  it  thickly  with  corn 
♦meal,  and  then  sweep  it  off,  and  renew 
the  dressing  from  time  to  time.  It  is 
well  to  say  here  that  if  a  floor  is  too 
slippery  (which  it  often  is,  if  hard  wood 
is  used  and  it  is  new),  there  is  nothing  to 


324         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND'  IT. 


be  done  but  to  sprinkle  it  with  powdered 
pumice-stone,  sweeping  it  off  before  danc- 
ing on  it  ;  and  again,  if  it  is  not  slip- 
pery enough,  then,  as  above,  give  it 
repeated  doses  of  corn  meal,  and  the 
roughest  floor  is  soon  put  in  good  condi- 
tion to  dance  on. 

The  opening  quadrille  of  this  ball  was 
very  effective.  We  formed  in  the  second 
story  of  the  Hall.  I  led  the  way  to  the 
ball-room  with  the  "  fairest  of  the  fair," 
the  dauo^hter  of  one  of  the  most  distin- 
guished  men  in  this  country  (who  had 
not  only  been  Governor  of  this  State, 
but  Secretary  of  State  of  the  United 
States).  We  were  surrounded  by  a 
noble  throng  of  old  New  Yorkers,  all 
eager  to  view  the  opening  quadrille. 
The  ladies  were  in  Colonial  costumes, 
representing  Lady  Washington  and  the 
ladies  of  her  court.  As  I  walked  through 
the  crowded  rooms,  having  on  my  arm 
one  of  our  brilliant  society  women,  "a 
flower  which  was  not  quite  a  flower,  yet 


BALLS. 


325 


was  no  more  a  l)ucl,"  we  met  approach- 
ing us  a  lady  in  indeed  gorgeous  ap- 
parel— so  gorgeous,  that  the  lady  on  my 
arm   at  once   accosted  her  with,   "  Good 

gracious,  my    dear    Mrs.     B  ,  what 

have  you  got  on  ?  Let  me  look  at  you." 
Her  head  was  a  mass  of  the  most  su- 
perb ostrich  plumes  Prince  of  Wales 
feathers,  which  towered  above  her,  and 
as  she  advanced  would  bend  gracefully 
forward,  nodding  to  you,  as  it  were,  to 
approach  and  do  her  honor.  Her  dress, 
neck,  and  shoulders  were  ablaze  with 
jewels  and  precious  stones,  and  in  her 
hand  she  carried  an  old  Spanish  fan, 
such  as  a  queen  might  envy.  The  fol- 
lowing reply  to  the  query  came  from 
this  royal  dame  :  "  What  have  I  got  on  ? 
Why,  Madame,  I  had  a  grandmother ! " 
"  Had  you,  indeed  !  Then,  if  that  was 
her  garb,  she  must  have  been  Pocahontas, 
or  the  Empress  of  Morocco  !  "  The  war 
of  words  beginning  to  be  a  little  sharp,  I 
pressed  on,  only  to  meet  another  famous 


326         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


lady,  whose  birthplace  was  Philadelphia, 
and  who  had  had  no  end  of  gfrandmothers. 
She  wore  a  superb  dress  of  scarlet  and 
gold,  tight-fitting,  such  as  was  worn  during 
the  Empire.  Another  young  woman  wore 
her  great-grandmother's  dress,  pink  and 
brown  striped  brocade,  cut  like  Martha 
Washington's  dress  in  the  Republican 
Court,  in  Avhich  her  great  grandmother 
figured.  The  wife  of  a  prominent  jurist, 
a  remarkably  handsome  woman,  with  a 
grand  presence  and  a  noble  carriage,  repre- 
senting Lady  Washington,  wore,  to  all  eyes, 
the  most  attractive  costume  there. 

During  the  winter  of  1877,  a  Southern 
woman  of  warm  sympathies,  great  taste, 
and  natural  ability,  having  married  a 
young  man  of  colossal  fortune,  was  urged 
to  take  in  hand  the  cause  of  the  wounded 
Christians  in  the  Russian-Turkish  War, 
and  raise  funds  to  send  to  their  relief. 
To  do  this,  she  formed  the  "  Society  of 
the  Crescent  and  the  Cross,"  and  a  ball 
was    given    under    her    auspices    at  the 


BALLS. 


Academy  of  Music,  remembered  in  society 
as  the   "  Turkish  Ball." 

This  lady  did  me  the  honor  of  making 
me  the  Chairman  of  the  Tloor  Commit- 
tee of  that  ball.  Consulting  with  her,  we 
selected  the  members  of  the  opening 
quadrille,  and  took  good  care  to  choose 
the  most  brilliant  women  in  this  city. 
My  partner  was  one  of  the  greatest  belles 
New  York  has  ever  had,  a  woman  of 
such  air  and  distinction,  such  beauty  of 
face  and  charm  of  manner,  as  we  read 
of,  but  rarely  see. 

Our  quadrille,  formed  on  the  stage  of 
this  large  opera  house,  with  the  guests 
of  the  ball  filling  the  galleries  and  look- 
ing down  on  it,  was  no  sooner  over  than 
I  found  we  were  in  this  dilemma :  Our 
little  quadrille  was  left  in  full  possession 
of  the  vast  auditorium,  and  the  ques- 
tion was,  how  to  get  the  people  to  leave 
the  boxes  and  come  down  to  us.  It  was 
not  in  an)'  way  a  full  ball,  and  as  the 
ladies  who  had    danced  in  the  c[uadrille 


328         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


at  once  retired  to  their  boxes,  they  left 
me,  as  it  were,  sole  occupant  of  the 
dancin<j  floor.  However,  I  rushed  around 
and  here  and  there  collected  dancinof 
men,  and  succeeded  in  getting"  a  respect- 
able number  on  the  floor,  and  infused 
spirit  into  the  dancing. 

The  trouble  in  such  cases  is  the  indis- 
position of  ladies  to  dance  at  a  public 
ball,  other  than  in  an  opening  quadrille. 
The  ball,  however,  went  merrily  on  to  a 
late  hour. 

A  few  years  later,  I  was  asked  to  be  one 
of  the  Floor  Committee  of  the  ball  to  be 
given  to  the  distinguished  French  and 
German  officers  who  came  over  to  join 
in  our  celebration  of  the  Centennial  of 
the  Battle  of  Yorktown.  This  was  the 
invitation  : 

Office  of  tlie  Frencli  Reception  Commission, 
Room  7,  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel, 

New  York,  28///  October,  i88r. 

Dear  Sir  : 

The  Connnissioners  appointed  by  the  Governor  of  the 
State  to  extend  its  courtesies  to  the  guests  of  the  Nation, 
request  that  you  7vill  act  as  one  of  the  Floor  Committee 


BALLS. 


329 


OJi  the  occasion  of  the  Ball  to  be  given  at  the  Metropoli- 
tan Casino,  on  the  evening  of  November  7. 
An  immediate  ansicer  will  oblige, 

Youjs  very  respectfully, 

WILLIAM  JAY, 

Chairman  of  the  Ball  Committee. 
To  Ward  McAllister,  Esq. 

Experience  had  taught  me  never  to  go 
on  a  committee  in  any  social  matter  unless 
the  committee  Avas  formed  by  myself,  or 
made  up  of  personal  friends  on  whom  I 
could  rely,  and  who  would  second  and 
support  me  in  my  work  ;  for  I  well  knew 
that  it  requires  hard  head-work  and  hand- 
work to  carry  through  to  success  any  so- 
cial project.  Sometimes  it  happens — it 
has  often  happened  to  me — that  you  have 
men  on  a  committee  with  you  who  are 
wofully  ignorant  of  the  work  they  have 
undertaken  to  superintend,  w'ho  in  one 
breath  tell  \o\x  '  I  know  nothing:  about 
this  business,"  and  in  the  next  criticise, 
discuss,  and  deluge  you  with  useless  and 
worthless  suggestions,  and  then,  when  they 
find    they    themselves    can    do  nothing 


33° 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


turn  the  whole  matter  over  to  you  and 
tell  you  to  "go  ahead."  You  do  go 
ahead  and  do  their  work,  and  then,  when 
they  find  it  is  effectual,  and  they  see 
your  efforts  will  be  crowned  with  success, 
they  quietly  come  in  and  appropriate  the 
credit  of  it. 

However,  on  this  occasion  I  agreed  to 
act,  as  my  duties  were  confined  to  forming 
the  opening  quadrille,  and  taking  charge 
of  the  dancing.  Picture  to  yourself  a 
huge  hall,  one  mass  of  human  beings 
awaiting  the  opening  of  the  ball,  impa- 
tient of  delay,  anxious  to  dash  off  into  the 
waltz,  tempted  by  the  inspiriting  strains 
coming  from  a  perfect  band  of  one  hun- 
dred well-trained  musicians.  Then,  at  one 
end  of  this  vast  hall,  a  stage  filled  with 
ladies  in  brilliant  costumes,  and  foreign 
officers  all  in  uniform  ;  the  Governor  of 
the  State,  the  Mayor  of  the  City,  and  the 
chairmen  of  the  various  Yorktown  com- 
mittees ;  then  your  humble  servant  as  one 
of  the  Floor  Committee,  flitting  from  one 


BALLS. 


group  to  another,  instructing  cacli  of  them 
what  they  were  to  do.  The  position  was 
indeed  droll.  I  stood  behind  the  Gover- 
nor, who  was  to  all  outward  appearances 
conversincf  with  General  Boulansjer,  but 
was  literally  squeezing-  my  hand  and  ask- 
inof  me  what  he  was  to  do.  One  dis- 
tinguished' German  general  promptly  said, 
"  I  go  it  blind  !  I  will  simply  do  what 
the  others  do,"  These  were  the  forces 
I  had  to  marshal  and  put  through  a  quad- 
rille. I  dodged  from  one  to  the  other  and 
called  out  the  fiQ;ures,  and  breathed  a  sioh 
of  relief  when   the  dance  was  concluded. 

Looking  around  the  galleries  and  scan- 
ning all  the  distinguished  people,  my  eye 
lit  upon  a  wonderfully  bright  and  intelli- 
(jent  face.  Inwardlv  I  said,  "There  is  a 
man  among  men.  Who  can  it  be?"  My 
curiosity  was  so  aroused  that  I  went  into 
his  box,  introduced  myself  to  him  as 
one  of  the  Floor  Committee,  and  said, 
"  I  have  never  seen  )'ou  before  ;  I  know 
you  are  a  distinguished  man.    Pray  who 


332  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  ■  FOUND  IT. 


are  you?"  Laughingly,  he  repHed,  "I 
am  James  G.  Blaine."  "  Well,"  I  said, 
"  my  instincts  have  not  failed  me  this 
time.  I  have  heard  and  read  of  you 
for  years.  Now  I  see  your  genius  in 
your  face."  Beauty  in  woman,  genius  in 
man,  happily  I  never  fail  to  discover. 

The  invitation  to  this  ball  was  as  fol- 
lows : 

tCoat  of  Arms  "] 
of  the  State  of  New  York.  J 

BALL. 

The  Commissioners  appointed  by  the  State  of  JVein 
York  reqnest  the  honor  of  your  presence  to  meet  the 
Guests  of  the  Nation  at  the  Metropolitan  Casino  on  the 
evening  of  Monday,  November  7,  at  ten  o'clock. 

New  York,  \()th  of  October,  1881. 

Some  of  the  distinguished  guests  of 
the  Nation  were  M.  Max  Outrey,  Min- 
istre  Plenipotentiare  de  la  France  aux 
Etats-Unis,  M.  le  Marquis  de  Rocham- 
beau,  General  Boulanger,  le  Comte  de 
Beaumont,  and  le  Comte  de  Corcelle, 
representing  the  Lafayettes,  and  Colonel 
A.  von  Steuben,  representing  the  family 
of  Major-General  von  Steuben. 


FAMOUS  NEWPORT  BALLS. 


333 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


A  Famous  Newport  Ball  —  Exquisite  effect  produced  by 
blocks  of  Ice  and  Electric  Lights —  The  Japanese 
room  —  Corners  for  "  Flirtation  couples" — A  superb 
Supper  —  Secretary  Frelinghuysen  in  the  Barber- 
shop —  /  meet  Attorney-General  Brewster  —  A  Re- 
markable Man  —  /  entertain  him  at  Newport  —  A 
young  Admirer  gives  him  a  Banquet  in  Ne^u  York  — 
Transformation  of  the  Banquet-hall  into  a  Ball-room. 

The  next  £rreat  event  in  the  fashion- 
able  world  was  a  Newport  ball.  A 
lady  who  had  married  a  man  of  cultiva- 
tion and  taste,  a  member  of  one  of  New 
York's  oldest  families,  who  had  inherited 
from  her  father  an  enormous  fortune,  was 
at  once  seized  with  the  ambition  to  take 
and  hold  a  brilliant  social  position,  to 
gratify  which  she  built  one  of  the  hand- 
somest houses  in  this  cit\',  importing 
interiors  from  Europe  for  it,  and  such 
old  Spanish  tapestries  as  had  never 
before  been  introduced  into  New  York  ; 
after  which    she  went  to    Newport,  and 

335 


33^  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


bought  a  beautiful  villa  on  Bellevue 
Avenue,  and  there  gave,  in  the  grounds 
of  that  villa,  the  handsomest  ball  that 
had  ever  been  given  there.  The  villa 
itself  was  only  used  to  receive  and 
sup  the  guests  in,  for  a  huge  tent, 
capable  of  holding  fifteen  hundred  peo- 
ple, had  been  spread  over  the  entire 
villa  grounds,  and  in  it  was  built  a  plat- 
form for  dancing.  The  approaches  to 
this  tent  were  admirably  designed,  and 
produced  a  great  effect.  On  entering  the 
villa  itself,  you  were  received  by  the 
hostess,  and  then  directed  by  liveried 
servants  to  the  two  improvised  salons  of 
the  tent.  The  one  you  first  entered 
was  the  Japanese  room,  adorned  by 
every  conceivable  kind  of  old  Japanese 
objects  of  art,  couches,  hangings  of 
embroideries,  cunning  cane  houses,  all  illu- 
minated with  Japanese  lanterns,  and  the 
ceiling  canopied  with  Japanese  stuffs, 
producing,  with  its  soft  reddish  light, 
a  charming   effect  ;    then,  behind  tables 


FAMOUS  NEWPORT  BALLS. 


337 


scattered  in  different  parts  of  the  room, 
stood  Japanese  boys  in  costume,  serv- 
ing fragrant  tea.  Every  possible  couch, 
lounge,  and  easy-chair  was  there  to  invite 
you  to  sit  and  indulge  yourself  in  case 
and  repose. 

Leaving  this  ante-room,  you  entered 
still  another  salon,  adorned  with  modern 
and  Parisian  furniture,  but  furnished  with 
cunningly  devised  corners  and  nooks  for 
"flirtation  couples";  and  from  this  you 
were  ushered  into  the  gorgeous  ball- 
room itself,  —  an  immense  open  tent, 
whose  ceiling  and  sides  were  composed 
of  broad  stripes  of  wdiite  and  scarlet 
bunting  :  then,  for  the  first  time  at  a  ball 
in  this  country,  the  electric  light  was  intro- 
duced, with  brilliant  effect.  Two  crrottos 
of  immense  blocks  of  ice  stood  on  either 
side  of  the  ball-room,  and  a  powerful  jet 
of  light  was  thrown  through  each  of 
them,  causing  the  ice  to  resemble  the 
prisms  of  an  illuminated  cavern,  and 
fairly  to  dazzle  one  with    their  colorin^r. 


33^         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT 
 1  

Then  as  the  blocks  of  ice  would  melt, 
they  would  tumble  over  each  other  in 
charming  glacier-like  confusion,  giving 
you  winter  in  the  lap  of  summer ;  for 
every  species  of  plant  stood  around  this 
immense  floor,  as  a  flowering  border, 
creeping  quite  up  to  these  little  im- 
provised glaciers.  The  light  was  thrown 
and  spread  by  these  two  powerful  jets, 
sufficiently  strong  to  give  a  brilliant 
illumination  to  the  ball-room.  The  only 
criticism  possible  was,  that  it  made  deep 
shadows. 

All  Newport  was  present  to  give  bril- 
liancy to  the  scene.  Everything  was  to 
be  European,  so  one  supped  at  small 
tables  as  at  a  ball  in  Paris,  all  through 
the  night.  Supper  was  ready  at  the 
opening  of  the  ball,  and  also  as  complete 
and  as  well  served  at  the  finish,  by  day- 
light, Newport  had  never  seen  before, 
and  has  never  since  seen,  anything  as 
dazzling  and  brilliant,  as  well  conceived, 
and  as  well  carried  out,  in  every  detail. 


FAMOUS  NEWPORT  BALLS.  339 


Desirous  of  obtaining-  an  office  from 
the  administration  of  President  Arthur,  I 
went  to  Washin^rton  with  letters  to  the 
President  and  his  Attorney-General.  On 
my  arrival,  depositing  my  luggage  in  my 
room  at  W'illard's,  I  descended  to  the 
modest  little  barber-shop  of  that  hotel, 
and  there,  in  the  hands  of  a  colored  bar- 
ber, I  saw  our  distinguished  Secretary  of 
State,  the  Hon.  Frederick  T.  Frelinghuy- 
sen,  who,  on  catching  sight  of  me,  ex- 
claimed : 

"  Halloa,  my  friend  !  what  brings  you 
here?"  He  had  for  years  been  my 
lawyer  in  New  Jersey. 

I  replied:  "  I  want  an  office," 

"  Well,  what  office  ?  " 

I  told  him  what  I  wanted. 

"  I  hope  you  do  not  expect  me  to  get 
it  for  you  !  "  he  exclaimed. 

"  Not  exactly,"  I  answered.  "  My  man 
is  the  Attorney-General,  and  I  want  you 
to  tell  me  where  I  can  find  him." 

"  Find  him  I  wh)',  that's  easy  enough  ; 


340  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


there  is  not  another  such  man  in  Wash- 
ington.   Where  do  you  dine  ?  " 

"  Here  in  this  house,  at  seven." 

"  He  dines  here  at  the  same  hour.  All 
you  have  to  do  is  to  look  about  you 
then,  and  when  you  see  an  old-fash- 
ioned, courtly  gentleman  of  the  Benja- 
min Franklin  style,  you  will  see  Brew- 
ster," said  Mr.  Frelinghuysen. 

While  quietly  taking  my  soup,  I  saw 
an  apparition  !  In  walked  a  stately,  hand- 
some woman,  by  her  side  an  old-fashioned, 
courtly  gentleman,  in  a  black  velvet  sack 
coat,  ruffled  shirt,  and  ruffled  wristbands, 
accompanied  by  a  small  boy,  evidently 
their  son.  "  There  he  is,"  I  said  to  my- 
self. Now,  I  make  it  a  rule  never  to 
disturb  any  one  until  they  have  taken 
off  the  edge  of  their  appetite.  I  stealth- 
ily viewed  the  man  on  whom  my  hopes 
hinged.  Remarkable  to  look  at  he  was. 
A  thoroughly  well-dressed  man,  with  the 
unmistakable  air  of  a  gentleman  and  a 
man    of    culture.     As  he  spoke    he  ges- 


FAMOUS  NEWPORT  BALLS.  341 


ticulated,  and  even  with  his  family,  he 
seemingly  kept  up  the  liveliest  of  con- 
versations. No  saoner  had  he  reached 
his  coffee,  than  I  reached  him.  In  five 
minutes  I  was  as  much  at  home  with 
him  as  if  I  had  known  him  for  five 
years. 

"Well,  my  dear  sir,"  he  said,  "what 
made  you  go  first  to  Frelinghuysen  ? 
Why  did  you  not  come  at  once  to  me  ? 
I  know  all  about  you  ;  my  friends  are 
your  friends.  I  know  what  you  want. 
The  office  you  wish,  I  will  see  that  you 
get.  Our  good  President  will  sanction 
what  1  do.  The  office  is  yours.  Say  no 
more  about  it."  From  that  hour  this 
Qflorious  old  man  and  myself  were  sworn 
friends ;  I  was  here  simply  carrying  out 
the  axiom  to  keep  one's  friendships  in 
repair ;  and,  as  he  had  done  so  much 
for  me,  I  resolved,  in  turn,  to  do  all  I 
could  for  him,  and  I  know  I  made  the 
evening  of  his  life,  at  least,  one  of 
pleasurable    and    quiet    enjoyment.  He 


342  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


came  to  me  that  summer  at  Newport, 
and  the  life  he  there  led  amonor  fashion- 
able  people  seemed  to  be  a  new  awak- 
ening to  him  of  cultivated  and  refined 
enjoyment.  He  found  himself  among 
people  there  who  appreciated  his  well- 
stored  mind  and  his  great  learning.  He 
was  the  brightest  and  best  conversationa- 
list I  have  ever  met  with.  His  memory 
was  marvelous ;  every  little  incident  of 
everyday  life  would  bring  forth  some 
poetical  illustrations  from  his  mental 
storehouse. 

At  a  large  dinner  I  gave  him,  to  which 
I  had  invited  General  Hancock  and 
one  of  the  Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  United  States,  the  question  of 
precedence  presented  itself.  I  sent  in 
the  Judge  before  the  General,  and 
being  criticised  for  this,  I  appealed  to 
the  General  himself.  "In  Washington," 
he  said,  "  I  have  been  sent  in  to  dinner 
on  many  occasions  before  our  Supreme 
Court  Judges,  and  again  on  other  occa- 


FAMOUS  NEWPORT  BALLS. 


343 


sions  they  have  preceded  me.  There 
is  no  fixed  rule  ;  but  I  am  inclined  to 
think  I  have  precedence." 

During  this  summer,  a  young  friend 
of  mine  was  so  charmed  with  the  At- 
torney-General, that  he  advised  with  me 
about  giving  him  an  exceptionally  hand- 
some entertainment.  This  idea  took 
shape  the  following  winter,  when  he 
came  and  asked  me  to  assist  him  in  get- 
ting up  for  him  a  superb  banquet  at 
Delmonico's.  He  wanted  the  brilliant 
people  of  society  to  be  invited  to  it,  and 
no  pains  or  expense  to  be  spared  to 
make  it  the  affair  of  the  winter.  I  felt 
that  our  distinsfuished  citizen,  the  ex- 
Secretary  of  State  and  ex-Governor,  who 
had  so  long  held  political  as  well  as 
social  power,  and  his  wife,  should  be 
asked  to  preside  over  it,  and  thus  ex- 
pressed myself  to  him,  and  was  re- 
quested to  ask  them  to  do  so.  I  pre- 
sented myself  to  this  most  affable  and 
courtly  lady  in  her  sunshiny  drawing-room 


344 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


on  Second  Avenue,  and  proffered  my 
request.  She  graciously  accepted  the 
invitation,  saying  she  well  knew  the 
gentleman  and  his  family  as  old  New 
Yorkers ;  and  to  preside  over  a  dinner 
given  to  her  old  friend,  Mr.  Brewster, 
would  really  give  her  the  greatest 
pleasure. 

Great  care  was  taken  in  the  selection  of 
the  guests.  New  York  sent  to  this  feast 
the  brilliant  men  and  women  of  that  clay, 
and  the  feast  was  worthy  of  them.  The 
"  I  "  table  (shape  of  letter  I)  was  literally 
a  garden  of  superb  roses ;  a  border  of 
heartsease,  the  width  of  one's  hand,  en- 
circled it,  and  was  most  artistic.  Del- 
monico's  ball-room,  where  we  dined,  had 
never  been  so  elaborately  decorated.  The 
mural  decorations  were  superb  ;  placques 
of  lilies  of  the  valley,  of  tulips,  and  of 
azaleas  adorned  the  walls  ;  and  the  dinner 
itself  was  pronounced  the  best  effort  of 
Delmonico's  chefs.  What  added  much  to 
the    general   effect   was  on    leaving  the 


FAMOUS  NEWPORT  BALLS.  345 


table  for  a  short  half-hour  to  find  the  same 
dining-room,  in  that  short  space  of  time, 
converted  into  a  brilliant  ball-room,  all 
full  of  the  guests  of  the  Patriarchs,  and 
a  ball  under  full  headway. 


AN  ERA  OF  EXTRAVAGANCE. 


347 


I 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Ne^M  Era  in  Nt"w  York  Society  —  Extravagance  of  Lt7'- 
ing  —  Grand  Fancy  Dress  Ball  in  Fifth  Aventie  —  / 
go  as  the  Lover  of  Margaret  de  Valois  —  A  Great 
Jourtialist  at  Newport — A  British  Officer  rides  into 
a  Club  House —  The  great  fournalist's  masked  Ball — 
A  mysterious  Blue  Domino  —  Breakfast  at  South- 
wick's  Grove  to  the  Duke  of  Beaufort  —  Picnic  gi'ven 
President  Arthur  —  His  hearty  Enjoyment  of  it  — 
Governor  Morgan  tnisjudges  my  "  Open  Air  Lunches." 
The  Pleasure  of  Country  Frolics. 

We  here  reach  a  period  when  New 
York  society  turned  over  a  new  leaf.  Up 
to  this  time,  for  one  to  be  worth  a  milhon 
of  dollars  was  to  be  rated  as  a  man  of 
fortune,  but  now,  bygones  must  be  b)- 
gones.  New  York's  ideas  as  to  values, 
when  fortune  was  named,  leaped  boldly 
up  to  ten  millions,  fifty  millions,  one  hun- 
dred millions,  and  the  necessities  and  luxu- 
ries followed  suit.  One  was  no  lonq-er 
content  with  a  dinner  of  a  dozen  or  more, 
to  be  served  by  a  couple  of  servants. 
Fashion  demanded  that  )ou  be  received 

349 


35°         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


in  the  hall  of  the  house  in  which  you  were 
to  dine,  by  from  five  to  six  servants,  who, 
with  the  butler,  w^ere  to  serve  the  repast. 
The  butler,  on  such  occasions,  to  do  alone 
the  head-work,  and  under  him  he  had 
these  men  in  livery  to  serve  the  dinner, 
he  to  guide  and  direct  them.  Soft  strains 
of  music  were  introduced  between  the 
courses,  and  in  some  houses  gold  replaced 
silver  in  the  way  of  plate,  and  everything 
that  skill  and  art  could  suggest  was  added 
to  make  the  dinners  not  a  vulgar  display, 
but  a  great  gastronomic  effort,  evidencing 
the  possession  by  the  host  of  both  money 
and  taste. 

The  butler  from  getting  a  salary  of 
$40  a  month  received  then  from  $60  to 
$75  a  month.  The  second  man  jumped 
up  from  $20  to  $35  and  $40,  and  the 
extra  men,  at  the  dinner  of  a  dozen 
people  or  more,  would  cost  $24.  Then 
the  orchids,  being  the  most  costly  of 
all  flowers,  were  introduced  in  profusion. 
The    canvasback,  that  we    could  buy  at 


AX  ERA  OF  EXTRAVAGANCE. 


$2.50  a  pair,  went  up  to  $8  a  pair;  the 
terrapin  were  $4  apiece.  Our  forefathers 
would  have  been  staggered  at  the  cost 
of  the  hospitaht}-  of  these  days. 

Lady  INIandeville  came  over  to  us  at 
this  epoch,  and  at  once  a  superb  fancy 
ball  was  announced  by  one  of  our  fashion- 
able rich  men.  Every  artist  in  the  city 
was  set  to  work  to  desicjn  novel  cos- 
tumes — to  produce  something  in  the  way 
of  a  fancy  dress  that  would  make  its 
wearer  live  ever  after  in  histor\-.  Deter- 
mining not  to  be  outdone,  I  went  to  a  fair 
dowager,  who  was  up  in  all  things  ;  asked 
for  and  followed  her  advice.  "  INIapleson 
is  your  man.  Put  )-ourself  in  his  hands," 
said  she  ;  so  off  I  went  to  him,  and  there 
I  found  myself,  not  onh'  in  his  hands, 
but  under  the  inspection  of  a  fine  pair  of 
female  eyes,  who  sat  by  his  side  and 
essayed  to  prompt  him  as  to  what  my 
dress  should  be. 

"Why,  man  alive!"  said  she,  "don't 
you  see  he  is  a   Huguenot  all  over,  an 


352         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


admirer  of  our  sex.  Put  him  in  the 
guise  of  some  woman's  lover." 

"  By  Jove,  you  are  right,  my  fair  song- 
ster ! "  said  Mapleson.  "I'll  make  him 
the  lover  of  Marguerite  de  Valois,  who 
was  guillotined  at  thirty-six  because  he 
loved  '  not  wisely,  but  too  well'  Pray, 
what  is  your  age?" 

"Young  enough,  my  dear  sir,  to  suit 
your  purpose.  Go  ahead,  and  make  of 
me  what  )-ou  will,"    I  replied. 

"Have  you  a  good  pair  of  legs?" 

"Aye,  that  I  have!  But  at  times 
they  are  a  little  groggy.  Covering  they 
must  have." 

"  Ah,  my  boy,  we  will  fix  you.  Buck- 
skin will  do  your  business.  With  tights 
of  white  chamois  and  silk  hose,  you  can 
defy  cold."  So  into  the  business  I  went; 
and  when  my  good  friend  the  Attorney- 
General  came  into  my  room,  and  saw 
two  sturdy  fellows  on  either  side  of  me 
holding  up  a  pair  of  leather  trunks,  I  on 
a  step-ladder,  one    mass  of   powder,  de- 


AN  ERA  OF  EXTRAVAGANCE.  353 


scending  into  them,  an  operation  con- 
suming an  hour,  he  exclaimed,  "  Why, 
my  good  sir,  your  pride  should  be  in 
your  legs,  not  your  head  ! " 

"At  present,"  I  said,  "it  certainly  is." 

The  six  quadrilles  were  really  the  event 
of  the  ball,  consisting  of  "  The  Hobby- 
horse Quadrille,"  the  men  who  danced  in 
it  being  dressed  in  "pink,"  and  the  ladies 
wearing  red  huntingr-coats  and  white  satin 
skirts,  all  of  the  period  of  Louis  XIV. 
In  the  "Mother  Goose  Quadrille"  were 
"  Jack  and  Jill,"  "  Little  Red  Riding- 
Hood,"  "  Bo-Peep,"  "  Goody  Two-Shoes," 
"  Mary,  Mary,  Quite  Contrary,"  and  "  My 
Pretty  Maid."  The  "  Opera  Bouffe  Quad- 
rille" was  most  successful;  but  of  all  of 
them,  "  The  Star  Quadrille,"  containing 
the  youth  and  beauty  of  the  city,  was  the 
most  brilliant.  The  ladies  in  it  were  ar- 
rayed as  twin  stars,  in  four  difTerent  colors, 
yellow,  blue,  mauve,  and  white.  Above 
the  forehead  of  each  lady,  in  her  hair,  was 
worn  an  electric  light,  giving  a  fairy  and 


354         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


elf-like  appearance  to  each  of  them.  "  The 
Dresden  Quadrille,"  in  which  the  ladies 
wore  white  satin,  with  powdered  hair,  and 
the  gentlemen  white  satin  knee  breeches 
and  powdered  wigs,  with  the  Dresden 
mark,  crossed  swords,  on  each  of  them, 
was  effective.  The  hostess  appeared  as  a 
Venetian  Princess,  with  a  superb  jeweled 
peacock  in  her  hair.  The  host  was  the 
Duke  de  Guise  for  that  evening.  The 
host's  eldest  brother  wore  a  costume  of 
Louis  XVI.  His  wife  appeared  as  "The 
Electric  Light,"  in  white  satin,  trimmed 
with  diamonds,  and  her  head  one  blaze 
of  diamonds.  The  most  remarkable  cos- 
tume, and  one  spoken  of  to  this  day,  was 
that  of  a  cat  ;  the  dress  beinsf  of  cats' 
tails  and  white  cats'  heads,  and  a  bell 
with  "Puss"  on  it  in  lartje  letters.  A  dis- 
tinguished  beauty,  dressed  as  a  Phoenix, 
adorned  w^th  diamonds  and  rubies,  was 
superb,  and  the  Capuchin  Monk,  with 
hood  and  sandals,  inimitable  ;  but  to  name 
the  most  striking  Avould  be  to  name  all. 


AN  ERA  OF  EXTRA  VAGANCE.  355 


The  great  social  revolution  that  had 
occurred  in  New  York  this  winter,  like 
most  revolutionary  waves,  reached  New- 
port. Our  distinguished  New  York  jour- 
nalist then  made  Newport  his  summer 
home,  buying  the  fine  granite  house  that 
for  years  had  been  first  known  as  "  The 
Middleton  Mansion,"  afterwards  the  "  Sid- 
ney Brooks  residence,"  and  filling  it  with 
distinguished  Europeans.  His  activity 
and  energy  gave  new  life  to  the  place. 

One  fine  summer  morning,  one  of  his 
guests,  an  officer  in  the  English  army,  a 
bright  spirit  and  admirable  horseman,  rid- 
ing on  his  polo  pony  up  to  the  Newport 
Reading-room,  where  all  the  fossils  of 
the  place,  the  nobs,  and  the  swells  daily 
gossiped,  he  was  challenged  to  ride  the 
pony  into  the  hall  of  this  revered  old 
club,  and  being  bantered  to  do  it,  he 
actually  did  ride  the  pony  across  the  nar- 
row piazza,  and  into  the  hall  of  the  club 
itself.  This  was  enough  to  set  Newport 
agog.    What    sacrilege  !    an  Englishman 


3S6         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


to  ride  in  upon  us,  not  respecting  the 
sanctity  of  the  place  !  It  aroused  the  old 
patriots,  who  were  members  of  that  Insti- 
tution, with  the  spirit  of  '76,  and  a  sum- 
mary note  was  sent  to  the  great  jour- 
nalist, withdrawing  the  invitation  the  club 
had  previously  given  his  guest.  The  lat- 
ter, in  turn,  felt  aggrieved,  and  retaliated 
with  this  result :  Building  for  Newport  a 
superb  Casino,  embracing  a  club,  a  ball- 
room, and  a  restaurant,  opposite  his  own 
residence.  All  this  evidencing  that  agita- 
tion of  any  kind  is  as  beneficial  in  social 
circles,  as  to  the  atmosphere  we  breathe. 

Then  our  journalist  conceived  and  gave 
a  handsome  domino  ball.  All  the  ladies 
in  domino,  much  after  the  pattern  of  the 
one  previously  given  by  the  Duchess  de 
Dino,  and  in  many  respects  resembling 
it,  having  a  huge  tent  spread  behind  the 
house,  and  all  the  rooms  on  the  first 
floor  converted  into  a  series  of  charming 
supper-rooms,  each  table  decorated  most 
elaborately  with  beautiful  flowers ;  as  hand- 


AN  ERA  OF  EXTRAVAGANCE.  357 


some  a  ball  as  one  could  give.  I  took  the 
wife  of  the  Attorney-General  to  it  in 
domino,  who,  after  her  life  in  Washington, 
was  amazed  at  the  beauty  of  the  scene. 
The  grounds,  which  were  very  handsome, 
were  all,  even  the  plants  themselves,  illum- 
inated with  electric  liq-hts — that  is,  streams 
of  electric  light  were  cunningly  thrown 
under  the  plants,  giving  an  illumination  a 
giorno,  and  producing  the  most  beautiful 
effect. 

At  this  ball  there  appeared  a  Blue 
Domino  that  set  all  the  men  wild. 
Comincr  to  the  ball  in  her  own  carriage 
(her  servants  she  felt  she  could  trust  not 
to  betray  her)  she  dashed  into  the  merry 
throng,  and  gliding  from  one  to  the  other 
whispered  airy  nothings  into  men's  ears. 
But  they  contained  enough  to  excite  the 
most  intense  curiosity  as  to  who  she 
was.  She  was  the  belle  of  the  evening  ; 
she  became  bold  and  daring  at  times, 
attacking  men  of  and  about  the  inmost 
secrets   of   their  hearts,  so  as  to  alarm 


35^         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


them,  and  when  she  had  worked  them 
all  up  to  a  fever  heat,  she  came  to  me 
to  take  her  to  the  door  that  she  might 
make  good  her  escape.  A  dozen  men 
barricaded  the  way,  but  with  the  rapidity 
of  a  deer  she  dashed  through  them, 
reached  the  sidewalk,  and  her  footman 
literally  threw  her  into  the  carriage. 
Her  coachman,  well  drilled,  dashed  off  at 
a  furious  rate,  and  to  this  day  no  one 
has  ever  found  out  who  the  fair  crea- 
ture was. 

The  next  social  event  after  this  grand 
ball  was  a  large  breakfast  the  '  sfreat 
journalist  gave  for  the  Duke  of  Beau- 
fort, at  Southwick's  Grove.  We  all  sat 
at  tables  under  the  trees,  and  we  had 
what  the  French  so  aptly  term  a  dejeu- 
ner dinatoire.  At  it  the  Duke  was  most 
eloquent  in  his  wonderful  description  of 
a  fishing  exploit  he  had  had  that  morn- 
ing ;  rising  at  2  a.m.,  and  driving  to 
"  Black  Rock,"  he  groped  his  way  to  the 
farthest   point,  and   had    the  satisfaction 


ajv  era  of  extravagance. 


359 


of  hooking  an  enormous  bass.  In  his 
own  words,  "  As  I  saw  him  on  the  crest 
of  the  wave,  I  knew  I  had  him,  and 
then  my  sport  began." 

Hearing  that  President  Arthur  would 
visit  Newport,  as  I  felt  greatly  in  his 
debt  I  resolved  to  do  my  share  in  mak- 
ing his  visit  pleasant  and  agreeable.  He 
was  to  be  the  guest  of  Governor  ]\Ior- 
gan,  whom  I  at  once  buttonholed  and  to 
him  gave  the  above  views,  I  found,  like 
all  these  great  political  magnates,  that  he 
preferred  to  have  the  President  to  him- 
self, and  rather  threw  cold  water  on  ni)' 
attempting  anything  in  m)'  humble  way 
at  entertaining  him.  "  Why,  my  dear 
sir,"  he  replied,  "  the  President  will  not 
go  to  one  of  your  country  picnics.  It  is 
preposterous  to  think  of  getting  up  such 
a  rural  thing  for  him.  I  shall,  of  course, 
dine  him  and  give  him  a  fete,  and  have 
already  sent  to  New  York  for  my  Ma- 
deira." 

"  Sent     for    your    Madeira  ! "     I  ex- 


360         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


claimed.  "  Why,  my  dear  Governor,  it 
will  not  be  fit  to  drink  when  it  reaches 
you." 

"  Why  not  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Because  it  will  be  so  shaken  up,  it 
will  be  like  tasting  bad  drugs.  Madeira 
of  any  age,  if  once  moved,  cannot  be 
tasted  until  it  has  had  at  least  a  month's 
repose.  President  Arthur  is  a  good 
judge  of  Madeira,  and  he  would  not 
drink  your  wine." 

"  Well,  what  am  I  to  do  ?  "  said  he. 

"  Why,  my  dear  Governor,  I  will  my- 
self carry  to  your  house  for  him  a  cou- 
ple of  bottles  of  my  very  best  Madeira." 
This  I  did,  sitting  in  the  middle  of  the 
carriage,  one  bottle  in  each  hand  (it  hav- 
ing been  first  carefully  decanted),  and 
into  the  Governor's  parlor  I  was  ushered, 
and  then  placed  my  offering  before 
the  President,  telling  him  that  I  well 
knew  he  loved  women,  as  well  as  sonof 
and  wine  ;  prayed  him  to  honor  me 
with  his  presence    at  a  Newport  picnic, 


AN  ERA  OF  EXTRA  VAGAXCE. 


361 


promising  to  cull  a  bouquet  of  such 
exotics  as  are  only  grown  in  a  Newport 
hothouse.  The  invitation  he  at  once 
accepted,  much,  I  thought,  to  the  cha- 
grin of  tlie  Governor,  who,  accompany- 
ing me  to  his  front  door,  said  : 

"  My  dear  sir,  one  must  remember  that 
he  is  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
ruling  over  sixty  millions  of  people.  He 
is  here  as  my  guest,  and  now  to  go  off 
and  dine  on  Sunday  with  a  leader  of 
fashion,  and  then  to  follow  this  up  by 
attending  one  of  your  open-air  lunches, 
seems  to  me  not  right."  (I  must  here 
say  in  his  defense,  that  the  Governor 
had  never  been  to  one  of  my  "  open-air 
lunches,"  and  knew  not  of  what  he 
spoke.) 

I  then  resolved  to  make  this  picnic 
worthy  of  our  great  ruler,  and  at  once 
invited  to  it  a  beautiful  woman,  one  who 
mifjht  have  been  selected  for  a  Ma- 
donna.  This  is  the  first  time  I  have 
made    mention    of    her  ;    she  possessed 


362         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


that  richness  of  nature  you  only  see  in 
Southern  cHmes  ;  one  of  the  most  beau- 
tiful women  in  America.  She  promised 
to  go  to  this  country  party,  and  bring 
her  court  with  her. 

I  selected  the  loveliest  spot  on  New- 
port Island,  known  as  "  The  Balch 
Place,"  near  "  The  Paradise  and  Purga- 
tory Rocks,"  for  this  fete.  The  Atlantic 
Ocean,  calm  and  unruffled,  lay  before  us  ; 
all  the  noise  it  made  was  the  gentle  rip- 
ple of  the  waves  as  they  kissed  the  rocky 
shore.  Giving  the  President  our  great 
beauty,  he  led  the  way  to  the  colla- 
tion, partaken  of  at  little  tables  under 
the  sparse  trees  that  the  rough  winter 
barely  permitted  to  live,  and  then  we 
had  a  merry  dance  on  the  green,  on  an 
excellent  platform  fringed  with  plants. 

At  a  subsequent  breakfast,  I  was  in- 
tensely gratified  to  have  the  President 
say  to  me,  before  the  whole  company, 
"  McAllister,  you  did  indeed  redeem  your 
promise.     The  beauty  of  the  women  at 


AN  ERA  OF  EXTRAVAGANCE.  3^3 


your  picnic,  the  beauty  of  the  place,  and 
its  admirable  arrancrement — made  it  the 
pleasantest  party  I  have  had  at  New- 
port,"— and  this  was  said  before  my 
friend  the  Governor.  Grand,  elaborate 
entertainments  are  ofttimes  not  as  enjoy- 
able as  countrj'  frolics. 


WASHINGTON  DINNERS  AND 
NEW  YORK  BALLS. 


365 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

/  visit  Washington  as  the  guest  of  Attorney-General 
Brewster  —  A  Dinner  at  the  White  House  —  Amus- 
ing arrangement  of  Guests  —  The  Winthrop  Statue  — 
The  memorable  Winters  of  1884-85 — A  Millionaire's 
House-warming — A  London  Ball  in  New  York  —  A 
Modern  Amy  Robsart —  Transforming  Delmonico's  en- 
tire place  into  a  Ball-room  —  The  New  Year's  Ball  at 
the  Metropolitan  Opera  House  —  Last  Words. 

The  following  winter  my  friend  Attor- 
ney-General Brewster  invited  me  to  Wash- 
ington to  pass  a  fortnight  with  him,  and 
I  then  got  a  glimpse  of  modern  life  in 
that  city.  I  enjoyed  my  visit,  but  found 
the  people  slower  of  action  than  we  are 
in  New  York ;  for  instance,  it  took  my 
kind  host  fully  a  week  to  consider  over 
and  map  out  a  dinner  for  me.  Then, 
just  as  I  was  leaving,  the  President  asked 
me  to  dine  with  him.  I  was  informed 
that  it  was  imperative  that  I  should  can- 
cel other  engao^ements  and  remain  over 
to  accept  his  invitation. 

367 


368         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


The  arrangement  of  the  guests  at  this 
dinner  was  to  me  amusing.  Reaching 
the  White  House,  I  was  separated  from 
the  ladies  I  brought,  and  could  not  in 
any  way  find  them  again  to  enter  the 
drawing-room  with  them,  but  was  ushered 
into  it  from  a  side  door,  and  there  joined 
the  gentlemen,  who  stood  in  line  on  one 
side  of  the  room,  while  from  an  opposite 
door  the  ladies  entered  the  same  room, 
and  formed  in  line,  as  it  were,  opposite 
the  men.  When  all  were  assembled,  the 
President  himself  entered,  bowed  to  his 
guests,  and  offered  his  arm  to  one  of  the 
ladies,  and  led  the  way  in  to  dinner. 

The  view  from  the  dining-room  into  the 
conservatories,  displaying  the  finest  collec- 
tion of  white  azaleas  I  have  ever  seen,  was 
most  effective.  The  dinner  was  good,  and 
well  served  ;  the  President  most  gracious. 
Turning  to  me,  he  said,  "  Why,  your  friend 
Winthrop  is  not  himself  to-day.  What  is 
the  matter  with  him?"  I  replied,  "My 
dear  Mr.  President,  he  has  been  up  to  the 


WASHINGTON  DINNERS, 


369 


Capitol,  and  seen  his  ancestor  in  white 
marble,  and  found  his  nose  was  shockingly 
dirt)'.  This  annoyed  and  mortified  him." 
The  President  replied,  "  Really,  well,  this 
is  too  bad  !  This  matter  shall  at  once 
have  my  attention.  That  nose  shall  be 
wiped  to-morrow  !  " 

The  winters  of  1884  and  1885  will  long 
be  remembered  by  New  York  society  peo- 
ple, for  three  of  the  largest,  handsomest, 
and  most  successful  balls  ever  given  in  this 
city  have  made  them  memorable.  The 
heir  to  probably  the  largest  fortune  ever 
left  to  one  man  in  this  country,  then 
threw  open  the  doors  of  his  palatial 
residence  and  generously  invited  all  who 
were  in  any  w\ay  entitled  to  an  invita- 
tion, to  come  and  view  his  superb  house, 
antl  join  in  the  dance  which  was  to 
inaugurate  its  completion. 

As  I  went  up  the  beautiful  stairs  and 
passed  along  the  gallery,  looking  down  on 
a  hall  such  as  few  palaces  contain,  with  a 
long  train  of  handsomely  dressed  women 


37°  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


passing  me  on  their  way  down  to  the 
reception  room,  it  put  me  in  mind  of  a 
scene  I  well  remembered  at  the  Hotel  de 
Ville,  in  Paris,  at  a  ball  given  by  the 
Emperor  Napoleon  III.  to  the  King  of 
Sardinia.  It  looked  royal,  and  was  most 
impressive.  Our  host  stood  in  the  centre 
of  his  hall,  giving  to  all  a  warm  welcome. 
Passing  him  we  entered  his  grand  salon, 
where  his  wife  received  us.  The  room 
itself.  Oriental,  and  as  Eastern  and  luxuri- 
ous in  its  own  peculiar  style  as  one  could 
create  it.  From  this  salon,  we  entered  a 
novel  Japanese  room,  and  then  the  fine 
dining-room  of  the  house,  with  its  marvel- 
ous ceiling,  painted  by  one  of  the  best 
modern  French  artists.  The  picture  galle- 
ries were  the  ball  and  supper  rooms.  The 
cotillion  was  danced  in  the  farthest  of  the 
two  galleries,  the  ladies  seated  in  double 
and  triple  lines  on  improvised  seats,  as  if 
they  were  sitting  on  a  long  extended  dais 
all  around  the  room.  The  effect  was  daz- 
zling and  brilliant.     All  supped  well,  for 


NEW  YORK  BALLS. 


371 


when  supper  was  announced  little  tables 
were  placed  like  magic  through  the  rooms  ; 
and  New  Yorkers  had  what  they  well 
knew  how  to  appreciate — an  elaborate,  well- 
served  repast  ;  champagne  in  abundance, 
and  of  the  best,  and  in  perfect  condition. 
In  my  opinion,  it  was  one  of  the  hand- 
somest, most  profuse,  liberal,  and  brilliant 
balls  ever  given  in  this  country. 

The  next  great  flutter  in  New  York's 
fashionable  world  was  the  announcement 
of  a  grand  entertainment  to  be  given, 
embracinor  all  the  features  of  a  London 
ball,  which,  though  a  novelty  here,  had  for 
years  been  done  in  London  ;  that  was  to 
build  an  addition  to  one's  house,  to  be 
used  but  for  one  night,  and  to  be  made 
large  enough  to  comfortably  hold,  with  the 
house,  one  thousand  or  twelve  hundred 
people.  There  was  plenty  of  energy  and 
talent  to  carry  this  out,  and  reproduce 
here  what  Londoners  have  always  been 
so  proud  of — their  ability  to  double  the 
capacity  of  their  city  houses  by  utilizing 


372 


SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


their  yards,  covering  them  with  a  tempo- 
rary structure,  to  be  used  as  a  supper  or 
ball  room.  A  young  man  of  an  old  Long 
Island  family  had  married  a  beautiful  girl, 
a  young  woman  such  as  Walter  Scott 
would  have  taken  to  impersonate  his  char- 
acter of  Amy  Robsart,  who,  besides  this 
natural  and  naive  style  of  beauty,  possessed 
great  administrative  ability,  and  withal 
much  taste,  a  great  amount  of  energy,  and 
a  fortune  large  enough  to  carry  through 
any  enterprise  she  conceived.  Both  of 
them  were  devoted  to  society,  and  to 
each  other.  Passing  their  summers  abroad, 
and  seeing  what  vast  conceptions  society 
there  undertook,  and  successfully  carried 
out,  they  resolved  to  repeat  here  what  they 
had  seen  on  the  other  side  of  the  water. 
In  Marcotte  they  had  a  great  ally,  a  man 
of  wonderful  taste  and  ability ;  planning 
out  the  work  themselves,  with  his  skillful 
hand  to  execute  it,  they  certainly  built  up 
in  a  night,  as  it  were,  a  superb  banquet- 
ing hall,  complete  and  elaborately  finished 


A'Eir  YORK  BALLS. 


373 


as  if  a  part  of  the  liouse  itself  ;  a  solid 
structure,  with  no  ap[)earance  of  its  being 
temporary  or  run  up  for  the  occasion. 
Throwing  two  houses  into  one,  and  de- 
scending from  them  into  this  vast  banquet- 
ing hall  by  a  wide  flight  of  stairs,  you  had, 
to  all  appearances,  a  grand  palatial  resi- 
dence, whose  rooms  the  largest  crowd 
could  roam  through  with  freedom  and  per- 
fect comfort.  The  houses  themselves  were 
so  handsomely  decorated  in  the  period  of 
Louis  XIV.,  that  it  required  cultivated 
taste  to  add  floral  decorations  to  such 
rooms  ;  but  it  was  done,  and  admirably 
done,  and  was  a  remarkable  feature  of  this 
superb  ball.  Garlands  of  the  delicate  La 
France  roses  were  festooned  on  the  walls, 
and  over  and  around  the  doors  and  win- 
dows, producing  a  charming  efTect.  There 
were  two  cotillions  danced  in  separate 
rooms.  The  approach  from  the  street  to 
the  houses  was  admirable  ;  the  pavement 
was  inclosed  the  entire  leng^th  of  both, 
carpeted,  and  brilliantly  lighted  with  in- 


374         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


numerable  jets  of  gas — a  ball  long  to  be 
remembered  ! 

What  then  was  there  left  for  one  to  do 
in  the  way  of  entertaining  to  give  society 
anything  new  and  novel?  This  duty  was 
then  imposed  on  me.  These  pages  bear 
evidence  that  I  am  blessed  with  memory, 
but  imagination  was  then  what  I  required 
to  conceive  and  carry  out  some  new  enter- 
prise in  the  way  of  a  subscription  New 
Year's  ball,  to  surpass  anything  I  had  ever 
before  given. 

The  most  difficult  rooms  to  decorate  are 
those  at  Delmonico's  ;  but  this  establish- 
ment is  unequaled  in  London  or  Paris  in 
that  it  gives  under  its  roof  incomparable 
balls,  banquets,  and  dinners.  So  w^e  re- 
solved that  talent,  taste,  and  money  should 
be  expended  in  an  effort  to  design  and 
give  there  a  superb  ball.  The  house  had 
the  advantage  of  having  a  large  square 
room,  all  that  was  required  for  a  dance  of 
three  to  four  hundred  people.  On  this 
occasion  we  were  to  have  seven  hundred. 


A'EJF  YORK'  BALLS. 


375 


and  for  so  large  a  number  we  had  to 
provide  two  salles  de  danse.  The  upper 
supper  room  we  turned  into  a  conservatory. 
Its  ceilin2:s  were  low,  but  coverin*]"  them 
with  creeping  plants,  making  around  the 
entire  room  a  dado  of  banks  of  flowers 
and  the  walls  themselves  decorated  with 
plaques  of  roses,  introducing  the  electric 
light  and  throwing  its  jets  through  all  the 
foliage,  we  had  an  improvised  bower  of 
flowers  and  plants  that  tempted  all  to  wan- 
der through,  if  not  to  linger  in  it  in  admi- 
ration of  the  artistic  skill  which  produced 
such  a  result.  One  room  we  converted, 
with  Vantine's  assistance,  into  a  perfect 
Japanese  interior.  Once  in  it,  we  felt 
transported  to  that  country.  Here  were 
served  tea  and  Japanese  confections,  and 
over  all  shone  the  electric  light  with  charm- 
ing effect.  The  salon,  known  as  the  Red 
Room  had  its  walls  decorated  with  sheaves 
of  wheat,  in  which  nestled  bunches  of  Mare- 
chalc  Neil  roses,  the  background  of  scarlet 
bringing  these  decorations  out  strikingly. 


37^         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


This,  with  a  new  floor,  was  converted  into 
a  salle  de  danse.  The  large  hall  into  which 
all  these  rooms  opened  was  superb,  for  on 
all  sides  of  it,  from  floor  to  ceilincj,  were 
hung  the  finest  Gobelin  tapestries  of  fabu- 
lous value.  To  obtain  their  use  we  had  to 
telegraph  to  Paris,  and  were  required  to 
insure  them  for  a  large  sum.  Servants  in 
light  plush  livery,  pumps,  and  silk  stock- 
ings, with  powdered  hair,  stood  on  either 
side  to  direct  the  guests.  Having  the 
whole  house,  we  supped  in  both  restaurant 
and  cafe,  and  as  we  had  given  an  unlim- 
ited order  had  an  elaborate  and  exquisite 
supper. 

For  a  small  ball  of  seven  hundred  people, 
I  have  always  felt,  and  still  feel,  that  this 
New  Year's  Ball,  as  given  at  Delmonico's, 
was  in  every  sense  of  the  word  the 
handsomest,  most  complete,  and  most  suc- 
cessful thing  of  the  kind  that  I  have  ever 
attempted  in  New  York  City,  and  I  find 
I  am  not  alone  in  this  opinion.  It  was 
as  much  a  feast  for  the  eye  as  the  elabo- 


NEIV  YORK  BALLS. 


377 


rate  supper  was  for  the  palate,  being 
complete  in  every  detail,  luxurious  in 
adornment,  as  to  its  rooms — and  epicu- 
rean in  its  feasting. 

New  York  society  had  now  become  so 
large  that  it  seemed  necessary  to  solve  at 
once  what,  to  us,  has  long  been  a  problem, 
i.  e.  where  we  could  bring  general  society 
together  in  one  larcre  dancino-room  ;  for 
though  you  may  have  a  dozen  rooms 
thrown  open,  you  will  always  find  that  all 
rush  to  the  room  where  there  is  dancinof. 
Where  then  could  we  Qet  a  room  where 
all  could  at  one  and  the  same  time  be  on 
the  floor?  It  occurred  to  me  that  the 
Metropolitan  Opera  House  had,  in  its 
stage  and  auditorium,  such  a  room,  and 
if  we  could  only  divest  it  of  its  character- 
istics, it  would  be  what  Ave  wanted. 

Satisfying  ourselves  that  we  could  ac- 
complish this,  we  formed  a  Committee  of 
Three  and  entered  on  this  new  enterprise. 
Artists,  who  have  with  ability  painted  small 
pictures,    may  venture  on  larger  canvas. 


378         SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 

We  had  succeeded  in  giving  balls  of  seven 
hundred  and  four  hundred  people.  Why 
not  have  a  similar  success  on  a  larger  scale? 
Had  our  ideas  been  properly  carried  out, 
this  ball  would  have  been  twice  the  suc- 
cess it  was.  The  defects  were  evident,  but 
when  seen  it  was  too  late  to  remedy  them. 
The  artificial  ceiling,  cleverly  planned  to 
shut  out  the  galleries,  was  not  completed, 
the  electric  lights  were  not  shaded  as  they 
should  have  been,  and  the  music  stands, 
ordered  by  the  authorities  to  be  elevated, 
were  unsightly,  and  marred  the  brilliant 
effect  we  had  studied  to  produce.  All  else 
received  more  praise  than  criticism. 

The  four  most  striking  points  of  this 
ball  were,  first,  the  reception  of  over 
twelve  hundred  people  as  at  a  private 
house  by  three  of  our  most  brilliant  and 
accomplished  society  ladies ;  again,  what 
may  be  termed  the  Quadrille  d'Hojineur 
of  that  ball,  which  was  the  different  sets 
of  the  Sir  Roger  de  Coverly,  danced  by 
the  most  distinguished  ladies  of  this  city, 


NEW  YORK  BALLS. 


379 


the  "nobs"  and  the  "swells"  on  this  occ:i- 
sion  uniting;  the  supping  of  over  twelve 
hundred  people  at  one  time  at  small 
tables,  and  the  cotillion  ably  led  by  one 
of  our  distinguished  State  Senators,  a 
man  in  himself  representing  family, 
wealth,  and  political  position. 

The  Sir  Roger  de  Coverly  was  danced 
in  the  auditorium  and  on  the  stage,  and 
before  its  completion  a  blast  from  the 
cornel  a  piston  was  sounded  by  direc- 
tion of  the  Management,  when  at  once 
the  three  members  of  the  Executive 
Committee  sought  the  three  lady  patro- 
nesses who  had  so  graciously  received  for 
them  the  guests  of  this  large  ball,  and 
had  the  honor  of  taking  them  in  to  sup- 
per. A  special  table  in  the  centre  of  the 
supper  room,  elaborately  decorated  with 
flowers,  was  arranged  for  them,  and  the 
handsome  and  courteous  gentleman  who 
so  royally  dispenses  hospitality  both  at 
his  house  in  town  and  at  his  ocean  villa 
in    Newport     (the    handsomest  country 


3 So  SOCIETY  AS  I  HAVE  FOUND  IT. 


residence  in  the  United  States),  at  once 
sought  one  of  America's  loveHest,  most 
beautiful,  and  most  graceful  daugh- 
ters, a  charming  representative  of  an 
old  Colonial  family,  and  doubly  a  New 
Yorker,  representing  the  historic  fami- 
lies of  Livingston  and  Ludlow.  Another 
member  of  the  Committee,  a  descendant 
of  one  of  our  oldest  families,  whose 
ancestor  was  a  distinguished  General  in 
the  Revolution,  had  the  fortune  to  have 
on  his  arm  a  most  superbly  dressed 
woman,  whose  tiara  of  diamonds  could 
well  have  graced  a  Queen's  brow — whose 
beauty  I  have  before  alluded  to  when 
comparing  her  to  Amy  Robsart.  I  had 
the  honor  of  leading  the  way  with  our 
leader  of  society,  whom  Worth  had 
adorned  with  a  robe  of  such  magnificence 
that  it  attracted  and  held  the  attention 
of  the  whole  assembly.  Her  jewels  were 
resplendent — in  themselves  a  King's  ran- 
som ;  and  placing  her  on  my  right,  at  the 
supper    table,   I    had    on    my    left  the 


NEW  YORK  BALLS. 


381 


beautiful  Avoman  who  had  won  the  hearts 
of  tlic;  American  nation. 

Before  leaving  this  ball,  I  must  mete 
out  due  praise  to  the  man  who  could  so 
successfidly  care  for  so  large  a  nund^er 
of  people  at  supper  at  one  time,  and  give 
credit  to  the  good  and  effective  work 
done  by  the  three  hundred  well-trained, 
liveried  servants  scattered  throuoh  the 
house,  understanding  their  work  and  per- 
formincr  it  admirablv.  This  ball  was 
given  as  a  New  Year's  Ball  on  the  2d 
of  January,  1890. 

And  now.  in  concluding  this  book.  I 
beg  to  say  that  I  have  simply  discussed 
society  as  I  have  found  it.  and  only 
such  entertainments  of  which  I  have  been 
part  and  parcel. 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN 
STATIONERY. 


383 


i 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION   IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


Mr.'WaRD  M9  Al.tJSTER. 


16  WEST  36'?  STREET. 


III  America  ihe  residence  is  ahcays  in  tlie  right  corner. 

In  England^  if  any  residence  is  engraved  on  a  card,  it  is  in  the  left  corner. 
In  France,  no  lady's  residence  is  now  put  on  a  card. 


3S5 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


386 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


MR.FHAHCIS 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


3S9 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


P.  P.  C.  :    Pour  prendye  conge.    Translated  into  English  :    To  take  leave. 


390 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


391 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


392 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION   IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


V 

\ 


393 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


.Id- 


394 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


395 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


397 


THE  PRESENT  FASHION  IN  VISITING  CARDS. 


39S 


MOURNING  CARDS. 


Going  oil/  oj  Moil)  iiiHg. 


Lighlcr  .\toiiriiiiig  for  Brol/iei  s  <j)iJ  Si's/e 


Mourning  used  in  this  country  /or  Scjresl  /xiiiitivcs. 
399 


MOURNING  CARDS. 


Mounting, 


Second  M.  urnitig. 
400 


MOURNING  CARDS. 


402 


MOURNING  CARDS. 


NOTE. 


r 


The  originals  of  the  following  forms  of  invitations,  etc.,  are 
on  a  double  note  sheet,  size  6";,  by  o,  folded  once  to  4j<  inches  wide 
by  6J3  inches  long.  The  material  is  a  medium  rough  cream-laid 
linen  paper,  with  water  mark. 

When  address  and  crest  are  used  on  notes,  they  are  done  in  a 
bright  red  ;  the  crest  being  embossed. 

Envelopes  used  are  of  same  material  as  note  sheet,  of  a  size  to 
take  the  note  folded  once  in  centre. 


ADDRESS  ENVELOPES  IN  EACH  CASE  10 


OR 


THE  FOKMER  PREFERRED. 


404 


FORMS  OF  CARDS  AND  INVITATIONS  NOW  USED  BY 
"THE  SMART  SET." 

AN  INFORMAL  ACCEPTANCE  TO  A  DINNER. 

Dear  Johnson  : 

It  ivill  give  me  pleasure  to  dine 
with  yon  on  Friday  next  at  S  delock. 
Pray  present  nie  most  kindly  to  Mrs. 
Johnson,  and  believe  me. 

Fa ith fully  yours, 

J.  J.  Murray. 

Union  Club, 
Monday,  iS  April. 


405 


AN  INFORMAL  REGRET  TO  A  DINNER. 


16  WEST  QB'^l]  STREET. 

Dear  Mrs.  Forsyth  : 

I  am  so  very  sorry  I  ca7mot 
have  tJie  pleasitre  of  dining  zuith  you  on 
the  1 2th  to  meet  Mr.  Waring,  as  I  am 
going  071 1  of  toivu  on  Wednesday  to  be 
absent  a  week. 

With  kindest  regards,  believe  me, 

1  Vj-.  sincerely, 

S.   T.  Olipha7tt. 


406 


A  FORMAL  INVITATION. 


16  WEST  36^.*;  STREET. 


Mr.  &  Mrs.  Chamberlain 
request  the  pleasure  of 

Mr.   &  Mrs.  Robinsoiis 
company  at  dinner  on  Tuesday,  September 
the  eleventh,  at  eight  o'clock. 

Aup'nst  2 1st. 


407 


A  FORMAL  ACCEPTANCE. 


16  WEST  STREET. 


Mr.   &  Airs  Robinson 
have  much  pleasure  in  acccptijig 

Mr.    &  Mrs.  C/iainbcr/aijfs 
kind   invitation    to    dinner    on  Tuesday, 
September  the  eleventh,  at  eight  dclock. 

A  ugnst  22. 


408 


ANOTHEft  STYLE  OF  AN  INFORMAL  ACCEPTANCE  TO  A 
DINNER. 


16  WEST  36T'.'  STREET. 

Dear  Air.  AInrray  : 

It  li'ill  give  me  great  pleasure 
to  di)ie  zcith  you  on  Friday  next,  April 
I2t/i,  at  eight  dclock. 


Yours  truly, 

J.  J.  Alurray. 


Tuesday. 


409 


A  FORMAL  REGRET  TO  A  FORMAL  INVITATION  TO  A 
DINNER. 


Fair  View, 

Nczupori, 

R.  I. 

Mrs.  Marcy 
regrets   that   as  she    is  leaving  Newport 
oil  Monday,  she  is  unable  to  accept 

Mr.  and  Airs.  C line  lis 
kind  invitation  for  the  i6th. 

1 2th  August. 

410 


AN  INFORMAL  INVITATION. 


16  WEST  36'^."  STREET. 

Afy  dear  Airs.  Forstcr  : 

Will  yoiL  and  Air.  forstcr  give  us 
the  pleasure  of  your  company  at  dinjicr, 
on  Tuesday,  September  the  eleventh,  at 
half  after  seven  d clock. 

Sincerely  yours, 

Caroline  Riisscll. 

September  third. 


411 


AN  INFORMAL  ACCEPTANCE. 

16  WEST  36T."  STREET. 

My  dear  Mrs.  Russell  : 

Mr.  Forster  &  I  have  imtch 
pleasure  in  aeceplnig  your  kind  invi/alion 
to  dinner  on  Tuesday,  September  the 
eleventh,   at  half  after  seven  deloek. 

Believe  me,  sincerely  yours, 

Frances  Forster. 

September  third. 


412 


AN  INFORMAL  REGRET. 


16  WEST  QBV.'  STREET. 

My  dear  Jllr.  RitsscH  : 

JlTr.  Forstc7'  and  I  regret 
extremely  that  a  previous  engage7ne7it 
prevents  onr  accepting  your  voy  kind 
invitation  for  Tuesday,  September  the 
eleventh. 

Believe  me,  sincerely  yo7irs, 

Frances  Forster. 

September  third. 


413 


A  FORMAL  ACCEPTANCE  TO  A  FORMAL  INVITATION 
TO  A  DINNER. 


Mr.  &  The  Hon''''  Mrs.  Coleman 
have  mnch  pleasure  in  accepting 

Mr.  &  Mrs.  R  ens  haw  s 
kind  invitation  for  Friday,    Aug.  i6th, 
at  y.jo. 


Faddcn' s, 


Newport. 


Aug.  gth. 


414 


ANOTHER  STYLE  OF  A  FORMAL  REGRET  TO  A  FORMAL 
INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 


Mr.  &  Mrs.  Williamson 
regret  that  oioing  to  a  previous  engagejiient 
they  are  tumble  to  accept 

Mr.  &  Mrs.  Montgomery  s 
kind  invitation   to   dinner  for  Saturday, 
eleventh  of  January,  at  eight  d clock. 

December  24th. 


16  WEST  STREET. 


415 


ANOTHER  STYLE  OF  A  FORMAL  ACCEPTANCE  OF  A 
FORMAL  INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 


16  WEST  36^!'  STREET. 


Mrs.   &  Mrs.  Robinson 
accept  zvith  pleasure 

Air.   &  Mrs.   Cliamberlaiii  s 
kind   invitation    to    dinner    on  Tuesday, 
September  eleverJh,  at  eight  dclock. 

August  22. 


ANOTHER  STYLE  OF  A  FORMAL  REGRET  TO  A  FORMAL 
INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 


16  WEST  36TJ^  STREET. 


Mr.  &  Mrs.  Blair 
regret  that   a  previous  engagement 
prevents   them  from  accepting 

Mr.   c2r"  Mrs.   Robinson  s 
kind  invitation  to  dinner  on  Friday,  I2th 
A  uo^iist. 

o 

2gth  July. 


417 


ANOTHER  STYLE  OF  A  FORMAL  ACCEPTANCE  OF  A 
FORMAL  INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 


16  WEST  36T^  STREET. 


Mr.   &  Mrs.  Scr^cveti 
accept  witJi  pleasure 

Mr.   &  Mrs.  Blair  s 
very  kind  invitation  to  dinner  for  Friday 
next  at  eight  dclock. 

April  8th. 


41S 


ANOTHER  STYLE  OF  FORMAL  REGRET  TO  A  FORMAL 
INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 


16  WEST  36T^  STREET. 

Mr.   &  Mrs.  Davis 
regret  extremely  that  a  previous  ettgagement 
prevents  their  accepting 

Mr.   &  Mrs.  Wilsons 
kind    invitation   to    dijuier  for  Monday, 
Septetnber  i6th. 

419 


ANOTHER  STYLE  OF  A  FORMAL  ACCEPTANCE  OF  A 
FORMAL  INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 


16  WEST  36\'.'  STREET. 

Mj\  E.  Berkley 
accepts  luith  pleasure 

Mr.   &  Mrs.  Whites 
invitation    to    dinner    on    Mojiday,  i6th 
September,  at  S  dcloek. 

I  J  September. 


420 


A  FORMAL  INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 


16  WEST  36"^.'.'  STREET. 

Mr.   &  Airs.    Van  Biircn 
request  the  pleasure  of 

Mr.   &  Mrs.  Catlins 
company  at  dinner  on  Saturday,  the  iitJi, 
at  eight  d clock. 

Dec.  2jrd. 

421 


A  FORMAL  INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 

This  should  be  engraved  on  note  paper. 


423 


AN  INVITATION  TO  A  DINNER. 

On  an  engraved  card.     The  best  iaste. 


424 


ANOTHER  STYLE  OF  AN  INVITATION  TO  DINNER. 
On  an  engraved  card. 


AN  INVITATION  TO  AN  AFTERNOON  TEA. 

On  an  engraved  card. 


426 


AN  INVITATION  TO  A  BREAKFAST. 

On  an  engraved  card. 


AN  INVITATION  TO  A  THEATRE  PARTY. 

On  an  engraved  card. 


428 


AN   INVITATION  TO  A  SMALL  DANCE. 
On  an  engraved  card. 


429 


AN  INVITATION  TO  A  MUSICALE. 

On  an  engraved  card. 


430 


ANOTHER  STYLE  OF  AN  INVITATION  TO  A  MUSICALE. 
On  an  engraved  card. 


431 


A  YOUNG  LADY'S  INVITATION  TO  A  MUSICALE. 

Cn  an  engraved  card. 


A  FORM  OF  INVITATION  TO  A  WEDDING. 

lingntieJ  on  note  pjfer. 


433 


ANCTHZK  rCRM  CF  INVITATION  TO  A  WEDDING. 


43* 


ANOTHER  FORM  OF  AN  INVITATION  TO  A  WEDDING. 

Engraved  on  note  paper. 


435 


INVITATION  TO  A  WEDDING. 

Engraved. 


436 


INVITATION  TO  A  WEDDING  RECEPTION. 


Engraved. 


437 


INVITATION  TO  A  WEDDING.  WITH  WEDDING  BREAKFAST. 


INVITATION  TO  A  WEDDING,  WITH  WEDDING  BREAKFAST. 
(Cards.) 


439 


ANNOUNCEMENT  OF  A  WEDDING. 

Engraved  on  Jtote  paper. 


ANNOUNCEMENT  OF  WEDDING. 

Engraved  on  note  paper. 


441 


INVITATION  TO  RECEPTION  AND  DANCE  ON  ENGLISH 
MAN-OF-WAR. 


442 


INVITATION  TO  RECEPTION  TO  THE  LORD  CHIEF  JUSTICE  OF 
ENGLAND. 


443 


INVITATION  BY  SECRETARY  OF  STATE  TO  AN  EXCURSION  ON 
WAR  STEAMSHIPS. 


444 


REGRETS  OF  MARQUIS  OF  LORNE,   GOVERNOR-GENERAL  OF 
CANADA,  TO  INVITATION  TO  PATRIARCHS'  BALL. 


^4ii!4  ^et^.,  ^SS3. 


445 


INVITATION  TO 


BACHELORS*  BALL,  METROPOLITAN  OPERA 
HOUSE,  N.  Y. 


INVITATION  BY  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  TO  A  DINNER 
AT  THE  WHITE  HOUSE. 


447 


A  PARIS  MENU,  1890. 


^^^^ 

— — $S0<9€  

Hors-d'CEuvre 
Consomme  ^Renaissance 
T urbot  sauces  HoUandaise  et  U^antua 
Selle  de  Cbe:^eUes  aux  Epinards 
Pain  de  Lievre  d  la  Franpaise 
T elites  Timlales  d  la  Talhem 
Faisan  triiffc  sauce  Chasseur  • 
Cardans  d  la  Savoyards 
Glace  Parisienne 
Gdlcail  Viennois 

This  menu  is  printed  on  parchment — size,  ^'4  x  7K  inches — with  border  in  silver. 


448 


A  PARIS  MENU,  i8go. 


Soi/tij^b  -cv  -lev  c)vo-ma4-HO, 

C£^t3cm>  a-'  'tcv  £)lcoC'Hi> 

% 

TVitf  border  of  original  is  done  in  silver. 


449 


A  PARIS  MENU,  1890. 


Consomme  Royal 
Crouslades  Dieppoise 
Filet  de  Boeuf  Renaissance 
Timbale  de  Supremes  de  Volailles 
Cuissot  de  Chevreuil  sauce  poivrade 
Salmis  de  Faisans  et  Perdrix 
Dinde  a  la  Perigueux 
Foie  gras  a  la  Frangaise 

Salade  de  Laitue 
Pointes  d'Asperges  veloutee 
Glace  Maltaise 
GAteaux 
Dessert 

Printed  on  a  card  3%  x  ty%,  ivitk  mottled  border  in  gold. 


A  PARIS  MENU. 


mil  5ii  V'^  Pars 


%m\i:%  k  la  gKoittegpau 
$M  h  Sauf  aux  Cijc^ 

(gimbale  -de  ^arclii  Srup 
^orl)ets  au  girscU 

gc'caKSCs  i^otiw 
^alade  Saiaoit 
ycmard  a  la  d'(DrIeatt8 
getit^  goia  a  la  Iran^aisi^ 
Casa^robs  i'§lhicot^  gij^lflmate 
^lace  ®or«adoi[ 
(gat^aiwt  |[ucqiiots 

gcssert 


RAPIDE  e  SUEDHOUOr 


The  original  is  printed  on  parchment,  ornament  done  in  gold. 


451 


A  PARIS  MENU,  1890. 


Oytd 


omxruL'  cu 


Original  done  on  while  piDx/imail,  ornamenl  in  gold  and  black. 


452 


A  NEW  YORK  MENU. 


r 


w 
O 

I 


ci'V 

7Vi<>  ca;  </       bevelled  and  gold  edges,  tlie  ornamentation  being  embossed  in  old  gold. 

453 


A  NEWPORT  MENU. 


Border  done  in  gold. 


454 


A  NEWPORT  MENU. 


UN    MENU    AUTHENTIQUE    AU    CHATEAU    DE   TUILERIES  A 
L  EMPEREUR  NAPOLEON  III. 


— ^1  \^L'V;  ^"tYciAic^i    i\       |^,lv.^...  vuxvch) 


tcVl       Moni^r  I.Cj-'y^  -|f.:ii^.' nfi'.b    .T.  ^  llTim  i  W.',  Tl'^UlV.'.V 


77-!^  original  is  on  an  embossed  card,  S^J^Sj^,  the  border  and  headline  being  done  in  gold. 

456 


MENU  OF  THE  SWAN  BANQUET. 


C^)txf)Olv5  Ca»|jM  JePfe,  eft- 


^OLxed    cT,  tlx-  d^cfje^A^AA^ 


'14  siysiJ  bCc' 


yAi?  original  of  this  Menu  is  done  in  gold. 
457 


MENU  OF  THE  BANQUET  GIVEN  THE  ATTORNEY-GENERAL  BY 
FREDERICK  DIODATI  THOMPSON,  FEBRUARY  3,  1883. 


/I 


'  IMlexax' 

ecu 


Heavy  white  card  all  done  in  gold. 
458 


FORMS  OF  INVITATIONS  USED 

BY  MR.  McAllister 


459 


NOTE. 


The  originals  of  the  following  forms  of  invitations,  etc.,  are 
on  a  double  note  sheet,  size  tyi  by  9,  folded  once  to  4J2  inches  wide 
by  6J^  inches  long.  The  material  is  a  medium  rough  cream-laid 
linen  paper,  with  water  mark. 

When  address  and  crest  are  used  on  notes,  they  are  done  in  a 
bright  red;  the  crest  being  embossed. 

Envelopes  used  are  of  same  material  as  note  sheet,  of  a  size  to 
take  the  note  folded  once  in  centre. 


ADDRESS  ENVELOPES  IN  E.^CH  CASE  TO 


OR 


THE  FOUMER  PREFERRED. 


460 


INFORMAL  ACCEPTANCE  OF  INVITATION  TO  DINE. 


16  WEST  36':'.'  STREET. 

Dear  Robinson  : 

I  accept  with  pleasure  your 
kind  invitatio7i  to  dinner  for  Monday, 
April  first,  at  eight  d clock. 

Very  truly  yours, 

Ward  McAllister. 

March  fiftcentJi. 


461 


INFORMAL  REGRET  OF  INVITATION  TO  DINE. 
16  WEST  Sei'^  STREET. 

Dear  Robinson  : 

I  regret  extremely  that  a  previous 
engagement  to  dinner  for  Monday,  April 
Jirst,  deprives  me  of  the  pleasure  of 
accepting  your    kind  invitation. 

Very  truly  yo?irs, 

JVard  McAllister. 

March  twenty-fifth. 


462 


ANOTHER  FORM  OF  AN  INFORMAL  ACCEPTANCE  OF 
INVITATION  TO  DINNER. 


Dear  Robiiison  : 

I  have  mtich  pleasure  in 
accepting  your  kind  invitation  to  dinner 
for  Monday,  April  first,  at  eight  d clock. 

Very  truly  yours, 

Arthur  Forster. 

March  fifteenth. 


463 


FORMAL  REGRET  OF  INVITATION  TO  THEATRE  PARTY 
AND  SUPPER. 


 Fifth  Avenue. 

My  dear  Mr.  McAllister  : 

I  am  very  sorry 
that  I  have  an  cngageinent  for  that 
evening,  and  am  deprived  of  the  plcaszire 
of  seeing  the  Kendal s  and  taking  supper 
with  you. 

Sincerely  yonrs, 

Jtilia  Meredith. 

Saturday,  April  second. 

464 


FORMAL  ACCEPTANCE   OF   INVITATION  TO  OPERA  AND 
OPERA  BOX. 


16  WEST  36™  STREET. 

My  dear  ]\Irs.  Erskiiic  : 

I  accept  luitJi  pleasure 
your  kind  invitation  to  join  yotL  at  tJie 
Opera  in  your  Box  on  Monday  evening, 
Jirst  of  April.     Thanks  for  the  ticket. 

Very  truly  yonrs, 

Ward  McAllister. 

March  tiventy-ninth. 


465 


FORMAL  INVITATION  TO  DINNER. 


16  WEST  36T!^  STREET. 

Mr.  Ward  McAllister 
reqiiests  the  pleasure  of 

Mr.  James  Carr's 
company   at   dinner   on    Monday,  April 
first,  at  half  after  seven  d clock. 

March  fifteenth. 


466 


INFORMAL  INVITATION  TO  THEATRE  AND  SUPPER. 


16  WEST  36T.«  STREET. 

My  dear  Mrs.  Meredith: 

Will  you  go  with  us 
to  the  Theatre  on  Monday  evening  next 
to  see  "  The  Kendals"  and  afterwards  to 
supper  at  Delmonicd s. 

We  will  stop  for  you  at  a  quarter 
before  eight  d clock. 

Very  truly  yours, 

Ward  McAllister. 

Friday,  April  first. 

467 


FORMAL    REGRET  OF  INVITATION  TO  DINNER. 


16  WEST  36^."  STREET. 

Mr.  Ward  McAllister 

regrets   extremely   that   a  previous 

engagement  deprives  him  of  the  pleasure 

of  accepting 

Air.  and  Mrs.  Erskines 

polite  invitation  to  dinner  for  Thursday, 

March  twenty-first. 

March  seventh. 


468 


FORMAL  INVITATION  TO  RECEPTION  ON  YACHT. 


